Home Is Where The Heart Is
by Radical Liar
Summary: This story is based on the major spoilers leaked this week and my way of coping with the information I learned without wanting to. Do not read this story if you want to remain spoiler free! (BTW, I just figured out what the Castle Ficathon 2013 is, so consider this my contribution.)
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: I suppose this is my way of coping with the spoiler bomb I got unwittingly and involuntarily doused with earlier this week. It was either that or drown my sorrows of a ruined season six premiere in too much tequila. Can I please ask that should you read and review this story you will refrain from posting any further spoilers in your comments? I really don't want to know more than I already do (I'm really curious to see how Andrew Marlowe writes himself out of the corner he's written himself into with the last three eps, but I want to see it unfold chronologically in the fall episodes, not some butchered snippets here and there taken out of context)._

* * *

"That was Freedman," Rachel McCord hung up her phone and looked at her team, "he's just sent up the newbie."

"Down boy!" Matt Hendricks laughed when he saw his partner perk up behind his desk across the cubicle.

"She's here?!" Richmond's voice was laced with awe.

"Try not to drool on her, when Granger introduces her. We don't want her to think we're freaks." McCord perched herself on top of her desk, watching her boys banter with amusement.

"But it's…" Richmond looked from Rachel to Matt in disbelief that they could stay so calm, "Nikki Heat."

"You do realize Nikki Heat is a fictional character," Matt rolled his eyes.

"But she's based on a real NYPD detective whose name just happens to be Kate Beckett. Seriously how many detectives named Kate Beckett can there be working for the NYPD homicide squad? And her file says she used to work at the 12th and that her unofficial partner was Richard Castle."

"Her file also says she didn't really have a partner until he came along, so what does that say about her personality?" Rachel interrupted Richmond's fanboy gushing. "She's probably not really a team player and doesn't play nice with the other kids."

"Nah, have you read the novels? Roach and Heat are like friends, and they're based on other people at her precinct."

"Can we lock him up in the closet for the rest of the day because I'm not sure I can take any more of his fangirling?" Matt looked at Rachel for permission.

"Hey!" Richmond protested.

"Don't tempt me," McCord rolled her eyes, when she spotted their section chief striding past the rows of office cubicles with a blonde woman in tow. She did a quick visual once over of their new colleague. She was tall and dressed professionally in a business suit that looked like it cost her monthly salary. Granger was talking animatedly, as he showed her around the floor, gesticulating wildly. She had her hair tied back in a strict ponytail, exposing the concentrated frown on her face, as if she tried to memorize everything Granger told her. McCord rolled her eyes. Great. An over-achiever.

"Ahh, Agent McCord!" Granger exclaimed when he spotted the team crowding around their team leader's desk with curious stares. "This is the newest member of your team. Agent Beckett, this is Special Supervisory Agent Rachel McCord."

"Hi, Kate Beckett," Kate held out her hand and gave the other woman a firm handshake. Just like McCord had done earlier, Kate did a quick mental assessment of the other woman. Her new team leader looked about as straight-laced as they come. She wore a dark casual business suit, little make up and her hair in a tight bun. Her broad shouldered stance spoke for itself. A woman who'd learned to run with the boys. Rachel McCord was every bit the no nonsense and driven investigator she used to be before Castle walked into her life. Kate wondered what _her_ back-story was. Rick would have no doubt already spun a tale of espionage and wronged injustice by now. A smile hushed over her lips but she quickly caught herself and straightened up again.

"Well, Agent Beckett, I'll leave you to familiarize yourself with your new team. If you have any questions, I'm sure Agent McCord will be able to help you."

"Thank you, sir."

"Nice to meet you. These are Agents Hendricks and Richmond." McCord nodded her head sideways in the direction of the two men who jumped up from their chairs.

"Hi, nice to meet you, Agent Hendricks." She shook addressed the older man first. He looked to be in his late thirties.

"Matt, nice to meet you."

"Kate." They shook hands and Beckett turned to the younger agent who looked to be about ten years her junior. They must have recruited him straight out of college.

"Hi," Richmond squealed and Kate quirked her eyebrows amused at her new colleague's shy reaction.

"You must excuse our boy Richmond here. He's been fangirling ever since we found out you'll be joining our team." Matt explained and Kate's eyebrows shot up.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, Detective Beckett," McCord stressed her old title, "your reputation precedes you. Rookie boy here has read every Nikki Heat novel forwards and backwards at least three times."

Richmond blushed and smiled shyly at Kate.

"I see." Kate nodded at the other woman and then turned her attention back to the younger agent who still stared at her slack jawed and in awe.

"You gonna faint when I shake your hands?" Kate squared him with her eyes. "Cause I ain't pickin' you up. That wasn't listed under duties and responsibilities in the contract I just signed."

Matt's jaw hit the floor as he turned to Rachel and raised his hand for a high-five, "I like you already, _Nikki Heat_."

Kate whirled around and fixated her new colleague sharply with a glare.

"You're gonna haze me until I earn my spurs, aren't you?"

"Pretty much." McCord grinned and Kate groaned.

"Don't worry, it's not too bad." Richmond finally said the first complete sentence. "I still live and eventually it stops."

"Oh, when did it stop for you?" Kate looked at him curiously.

"Oh," Richmond glanced down at his watch, "About twelve minutes ago when you stepped off the elevator."

"Alright, folks, let's get Agent Beckett settled in." Rachel pointed to a particular desk, "That one is yours. You'll partner with me at first to complete your training, then we'll rotate for a couple of weeks to find out how our new team works best. Any questions?"

"Yes, where can I get my credentials?" Kate tipped her finger against her visitor's badge.

"I'll take you!" Richmond immediately offered.

McCord rolled her eyes and looked at Kate questioningly. Beckett's only response was a shrug, after all she'd put up with Castle for five years.

"Alright Rookie, but don't scare her off." McCord nodded and watched the young man grab Beckett by her arm and literally drag her after him.

"Five bucks says fanboy asks her out on a date before they get into the elevator." Matt snuck up next to McCord and startled her a little bit.

"Geeze!" Rachel put her hand over her heart. "Five bucks says she breaks his and your heart before the day ends."

Matt raised his eyebrows.

"Don't tell me you didn't see that rock on her finger?"

"What rock?" Hendricks craned his neck trying to catch another glimpse of their new colleague.

"Some investigator you are. She's only wearing a diamond ring that rivals the Hope Diamond."

"What? You mean she's?" Matt's face fell.

"Engaged? Oh yeah and from the looks of it to a man who can afford it." McCord shook her head at her partner, "Seriously?"

Matt pulled a face, "What? No, I mean, it's a pity because it would have been kinda fun watching Richmond wooing her."

Rachel shot him an incredulous look, "Yeah right."

"Hey, can't blame a guy for trying. Did you see those legs?! She's like super hot."

"Well, don't let her hear you and Rookie discussing her assets, she looks like she can take you down blindfolded."

Matt huffed indignantly. "She's a lightweight. I can take her with one arm tied behind my back."

"Care to put your money where your mouth is?"

"You're on, McCord."

"Fine, I'll book the gym for a team sparring session tomorrow."

Meanwhile at the elevator, Kate felt Richmond's eyes staring at her transfixed. Realizing he wasn't going to press the call button anytime soon, she reached out and did so herself.

"So, it's really you?" He finally blurted out.

"Yep. I'm me." Kate tried to suppress a smile.

"Wow, I can't believe I get to work with Nikki Heat."

"Okay, Richmond, let's get this straight right away. I am _not_ Nikki Heat. _Nikki Heat_ is a fictional character made up by the writer Richard Castle. Go it?"

Richmond nodded but continued enthusiastically, "But it's you, right? I mean, you're _the_ Kate Beckett, the inspiration for Nikki Heat, aren't you? You know Richard Castle."

Kate rolled her eyes, "I suppose so." She stepped into the elevator that had just arrived.

"Awesome!" Richmond squealed and followed her quickly inside. He pushed the correct floor for HR. "So what's it like working with Roach? You know I've always thought I myself am a lot like Raley. I'm kind of the media czar here."

Kate suppressed a timid smile. Oh that explained so much – the age, the fanboy – Richmond was their tech whiz kid. Probably graduated from MIT or CalTech and recruited off the campus nerd squad during the commencement speeches.

"So any audiovisual evidence you got – I'm your man." Kate tuned back into the rambling of her younger colleague who never seemed to stop talking. "Do you think Richard Castle will make Nikki Heat an FBI agent or something now that you're with us? Cause that would be so cool, if he wrote a book about our team. Even if he doesn't, do you still keep in touch with him? Cause I'd love to meet him and show him a few of my tricks that Raley could use in the next novel to track down a killer."

Kate took a deep breath as the elevator doors closed. This was going to be one long first day at work.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Thanks for the positive feedback, I'm glad this story's met such a huge resonance. There's been a complain about lack of Caskett fluff, so fresh out of the oven I present to you, chapter two._

* * *

It had been a long day of paperwork and Kate was relieved to come back to a quiet hotel room. She fell exhausted onto the couch and checked her watch. As if right on cue, her pocket started vibrating. She quickly pulled out her phone and opened the message from Rick.

"_Where are you?"_

"Just got home. Call?" She texted back.

"_Can't. Still in meeting. _:(_"_

"Should I be worried?"

"_Nah, Gina and Paula are fighting over… I don't even know what. I think they may have forgotten I am here…"_

Kate chuckled. "Think you can sneak out for a quick good night call? I'm beat and don't know how much longer I can stay awake."

"_I would love to but I'm afraid if I move they realize I'm still here and pounce on me. They look like they're out for someone's blood and I'd rather it be Jared from catering who's apparently screwed up the arrangements for the book party."_

"I miss you."

"_I miss you, too. How was your first day at work? Did you play nice and make friends?"_

"Work was good. I think I'm working with your younger brother."

"_Huh?" _She could almost see the confused look on his face.

"There's this really young college kid on my team who's the biggest fangirl of Nikki Heat I've ever seen."

"_Oh really? Do tell me!"_

"Like you need me to stroke your ego."

"_Not my ego…" He fired back quickly. Kate rolled her eyes._

"Sexting? At work?! Really Castle?"

"_What? A man has his needs and I haven't seen you since Sunday. Besides, Gina and Paula don't know I'm sexting you under the table."_

"This is getting dirtier by the minute. :)"

"_No. Dirty would be if I were doing you on the big conference table here."_

"Rick! Delete that!"

She could hear the sound of his laughter as if he were sitting right next to her. She wondered if he drew Paula's or Gina's unwanted attention, when she didn't hear back from him right away.

"I'm serious, Rick. I don't want anyone to see that! What if you get into an accident and CSU take your phone and find the message?"

"_Dating a cop was the worst idea I ever had. You're taking all the fun out of everything."_

"Just wait until you're married to a federal agent!" She shot back. "Now go and delete that damn message."

A few seconds later her phone lit up and vibrated in her hands. _"Done!"_

"Thank you."

"_Okay, where were we? Right, first day at work. How'd it go? Did you catch a case already?"_

"No, just filling out paperwork. Long and boring day, possible carpal tunnel syndrome. Filling out forms is just not the same when you're not there to distract me with paperclip chains and origami."

"_I can have a thousand paper cranes delivered to your desk tomorrow. It'll be just as if I was there." _

Kate smiled, "Would you be upset if my wish were to never fill out another form in my entire life?"

"_A teensy weensy bit. But I'd still love you. So back to work… you've got fangirl already following you around, who else is on your team? Do you have a new partner?"_

"Fangirl is technically a fanboy whose name is Richmond."

"_Tell me he isn't your new partner!"_

"Jealous?"

"_No, more like worried a pimply faced frat boy who can't find his own ass with a map is supposed to keep you out of harm's way." _

"Relax, Rick. My new partner is actually also the team leader so I'll be in good hands." She could hear his sigh of relief all the way from New York. "And then there's Matt. He's a bit older and another senior agent. They're actually really good people. They kind of remind me of our old team at the twelfth."

"How so?"

"Well, Rachel our team leader reminds me a lot of how I was before I met you. The whole team seems to get along really well. And Richmond is like Ryan on steroids."

"That bad?"

"He calls himself the media czar, you know after Raley from the books."

"That bad?"

"Yep. Wouldn't shut up about Nikki Heat this and Richard Castle that. Reminds me a lot of when you started at the precinct and Kevin carried around a book of yours all the time, trying to impress his celebrity crush."

"He did? I never noticed!"

She could practically see the little pout on his face.

"_Are they giving you a hard time about the Nikki Heat thing?"_

"Just a little hazing."

"_Do you need me to come?"_

"And do what? Rough them up with your sharp tongue?"

"_No but I could talk to them. Explain. Or I could bring Ryan and Espo to rough them up a little."_

"No, it's fine. They're not mean about it. Just a little hazing for the new kid on the block."

"_But you're no rookie. You're a tough and savvy NYPD detective with an outstanding record. They should show you some respect."_

"That's sweet of you, Castle. But first I gotta earn my respect around here. I'm a big girl, I can handle myself. And if it gets too much, I'll just channel Lanie, when they get too obnoxious."

"Lanie?"

Kate grinned and quickly explained her sassy comeback when she got introduced to the celebrity-struck Richmond.

"_Ain't picking you up from the floor when you faint? That doesn't sound like Lanie. Much too harmless."_

"Well, I figured threatening to smack him on my first day at work wasn't going to earn me any brownie points."

"_Are you sure you don't want me to come?"_

"Yes. I want you to stay in New York and finish the arrangements for your book launch party, so you can come and spend the weekend with me."

"_Are we still going to look at houses and apartments?"_

"Unless we catch a high priority case, I guess so."

"_Good, I've already looked online and contacted some real estate agents to send me brochures."_

"Just don't go overboard, Castle. I know you said it's a good investment for your royalties to buy property in our nation's capital, but we know the housing market is slowly recovering at best."

"_I thought you said you trusted me doing the preliminary scouting."_

"And I do. You know me and you know my taste, I have no doubts you'll pick out listings we'll both like. I just don't want you go and buy the White House."

"_I don't think that's for sale."_

"You know what I mean."

"_Yes, I do. And I can't wait to see your face when we go look at the places. You're gonna love them all and will have a hard time to pick one out."_

Beckett stared at her phone in silence. House hunting. She was really going house hunting with her fiancé this weekend. When the hell had that happened? The past month had gone by in a blur. She left New York City only two weeks after she had accepted Rick's proposal to start her training in Quantico. Kate had to learn a whole new set of procedures and undergo specialized tactical training as well as prove her marksmanship on the FBI issued service weapons. She had barely time to process the change of status in their relationship. Rick had stayed behind in New York City to wrap up loose ends, since he couldn't join her at the FBI Academy anyway. When she'd passed her qualifying exams last Friday and moved out of the dorms in Quantico, Rick had joined her for the weekend and booked them a nice hotel suite at the W. They did a little bit of location scouting in the neighborhoods Castle had researched while she underwent training and came to the conclusion that Rick would do most of the legwork to find them a new place to stay. That way she could focus on work. Kate had put up a bit of a fight, when Rick had insisted they keep the suite until they found their permanent place but eventually acquiesced when he gave her that slightly salacious but mostly impish grin and called it an engagement gift.

Her phone vibrated incessantly in her hand brought her out of her reverie.

"_Kate?"_

"_Kate?!"_

"_Kate, you still there?"_

"_Honey, you ok?"_

"What did I say about pet names?"

"_I was just about to step outside and call you, risking Paula and Gina's wrath."_

"Just lost in thought…"

"_Good thoughts?"_

"Thinking about you. How much I miss you. How much fun we had on the weekend."

"_I miss you, too, Kate. So much."_

"I can't wait to get our own place here."

"_Me neither. I can't wait for us to live together out in the open. No more hiding. No more secrets."_

"The lying killer was right."

"We didn't drown in them. We're just poor at communicating but that's going to change, I promise."

Screw it, he'd just have to deal with Paula and Gina ganging up on him. She quickly scrolled to the top of her screen and pressed the call button.

"Why'd you do that? You startled the hyenas." He greeted her with a whine.

"Because I needed to hear your voice before I go to bed." She blushed, thankful he couldn't see her. "What about the hyenas? Are the salivating and licking their mouths yet or do you think you can get some privacy?"

"Oddly enough, they cast me an annoyed looked and went right back arguing. I think we may get away with it."

"Good, because I miss you and I wanted to say good night and tell you I love you."

"I love you, too. Be careful ok?"

"You know I am. Besides we've not been assigned our own case yet. Right now we're helping out two other teams."

"I…just… be safe. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you. I love you, Kate."

"I promise I'll be careful. There feel better now?"

"I know you think I'm childish and overprotective or whatever but… I don't know these people. I have to trust them that they can keep you safe and out of harm's way."

"Nothing's gonna happen, Rick."

"Just don't make me a widower before we've had a chance to announce our engagement, ok?"

"I'll try. It's on top of my list of daily goals."

"Good that's all I ask. Now go to bed and get some sleep, so you'll be alert and on guard tomorrow."

"Ok. Talk to you tomorrow night?"

"Always."

"Love you."

"Love you, too."

Rick hung up and turned around to be met with the shocked faces of his book agent and ex-wife. They stared at him with wide eyes and open mouths. They weren't even salivating. They looked ready to go in for the kill. This was bad. Very, very bad. What had he gotten himself into now?


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: Thanks to everyone who's left a review. I'm still floored by the positive response and the numerous follows and favorites. You guys rock!_

* * *

"So how about that Jared, huh?" Castle clapped his hands together.

"You're engaged?" The women chorused and Castle regretted that he was not in the same position as Kate, who could just simply thrust out her left hand and let the engagement ring dazzle and distract people from their questions. He shoved his hands into his pockets and stared at them sheepishly.

"When were you going to tell me?" Paula shook her head at him in irritation. "The book party's only two weeks away, how on earth am I supposed to turn it into an engagement party on such sort notice?"

"No, Paula." Castle shook his head adamantly.

"What do you mean no?"

"There'll be no flashy engagement party this time. She's not that kind of girl. She's not in it for the fame and money. She couldn't care less for the media hype around Richard Castle, she just wants Richard Rodgers, the goofy guy who makes her smile at the end of a long day. She just wants me. She loves me for who I really am. In spite of who I really am."

"Ricky, you're killing me here. I've got a book to promote and you know this kind of news will generate free publicity until _Deadly Heat_ drops in four and half weeks, if not longer. You can't drop a bombshell like this on me and expect me to do nothing about it!"

"I mean it, Paula. Don't leak this behind my back or we're through. She's just started her new job in DC and I don't want reporters hassling her at work. Things are tough enough for us as they are. The last thing we need is the press poking their nose where it doesn't belong."

"Who's that girl anyway that she's got you wrapped around her little finger like that? I hope she's worth it!" Paula grumbled.

"Isn't that obvious?" Gina, who had been quietly studying her ex-husband the whole time, finally broke her silence. "He's marrying Kate."

"Kate? Who?" Paula looked at them confused. She hated it when she felt left out of the loop.

Gina rolled her eyes and tapped her fingers against the large _Deadly Heat_ cardboard poster propped on the easel next to her. Paula's jaw hit the floor.

"Nooo! _Thaaat_ Kate?" She drew out the vocals and looked at Rick for confirmation, who only shrugged his shoulders. "I thought she hated your guts? The last time I saw her was at the party for _Heat Wave_ and you guys were to jumping down each other's throats."

"Well, and now we're jumping each other's bones." Rick shrugged with a smirk.

Paula gasped and clutched her hand to her chest as realization hit her. "Oh my god! You're marrying Nikki Heat! Rick, you're engaged to Nikki Heat."

"Would you stop calling her that? She's not Nikki Heat. Her name's Kate."

"But you're marrying freakin' _Nikki Heat_!" Paula exclaimed. "Don't you remember the sensational run we've had with Derrick Storm when you hooked up with Gina. Writer and publisher was great. Writer and muse? That's better than great, Ricky, that's awesome with a capital A."

"Would you please stop looking at my engagement like a cash cow you can milk? This is my personal life we're talking about. I love this woman and I will not let anyone exploit that love for money or personal gain!" Castle erupted in anger.

"Gina, will you please talk some sense into your ex?" Paula rolled her eyes. "Okay, Ricky, let me get this straight. You just told your publisher and book agent that you've proposed to the woman on whom you based an entire series of best selling novels, which for all intents and purposes mirror your real life and you seriously expect us not to milk this for the release party of the latest novel in said series?"

"Umm, yes!" Rick smiled relieved.

"Is he always that dumb?" Paula turned to Gina, "Whatever did you see in him?"

"I don't see what the big deal is? Nothing has changed!"

"_Everything_ has changed, Ricky. I'm sorry but I can't sit on this. Do you have any idea how much publicity this will generate? The fans will eat out of your hand at book signings; they've always loved Detective Beckett. I'm pretty sure quite a number of them ship you and Beckett in real life. The pre-sales will be off the charts because everyone can't wait to read about you and Kate in the latest book. A story like that is too good an opportunity to pass on. I can see already the headlines: Life imitates art, or is it art imitating life? Richard Castle to marry his longtime muse."

"That's not how it happened and you know that. I didn't sleep with Kate while I wrote the books, so don't make it sound so dirty."

Paula cast him a look of disbelief.

"Well, fine. We hooked up just before I started _Deadly Heat_. But that's not the point. I purposely kept Rook and Heat's characters separate from me and Kate."

"That's not how the fans and the media will see it and you know it." Paula interjected. "There's enough in Rook to know he's based on you for anyone familiar with your life story. They'll apply the same logic to Kate and Nikki Heat."

"I've dated other women over the past few years." He looked at Gina and pointed at her, "We even made it to page six with our public break up!"

"Which the press will now say was because you've been screwing your muse on the side all the time." Paula shook her head. "Please Rick, at least let me do a press release. You know it's always better when the information comes from us, saves us a lot of damage control afterwards."

"They'll say that anyway." He pouted with a guilty look. And they wouldn't be completely wrong. He may not have cheated on Gina with Kate by sleeping with her but he certainly lusted for her since the day they met.

"We could do a press conference before the party. Kate doesn't even have to be there. You can field the questions alone, just in case it turns awful. I'll call in a few favors from friends and we plant questions with the promise of exclusive interviews afterwards. Maybe _with_ Kate there as an added incentive. Provided they refrain from printing defamation and lies. Hopefully we can steer them away from the gossipy part and get them to focus on the romantic part about the writer falling in love with his muse after all those years of shadowing her at work."

"Let me talk to Kate about it over the weekend." Castle finally acquiesced, knowing Paula had a point. Gina nodded at him in agreement. "Don't do anything before you hear back from me. I mean it, Paula. Don't leak it "for my own good", if you can't promise me this doesn't leave this room, then I'll dash down to legal and bring back a lawyer to draft a confidentiality agreement."

"Good luck with that, legal gets to leave at 5pm like normal people, unlike us who have to work insane hours." Paula grumbled. "But okay, fine. My lips are sealed until I hear from you. But don't wait too long. I need to know by Monday to make necessary arrangements. If it's too short notice, I won't be able to call in too many favors."

Rick nodded, then he turned to his ex-wife. "I'm sorry, Gina, this is not how I wanted you to find out."

"Yeah, I think I would've preferred reading about it in the _Ledger_." She gave a humorless laugh. "I just hope she doesn't break your heart again." Gina sent her ex a knowing look.

"Not gonna happen." Rick shook his head. "This is the real deal, Gina. I love her and she loves me. This is the best relationship I've ever head." He winced when he realized what he'd just said. "Sorry, I don't mean it like that."

"No, it's okay, Rick. I'm a big girl. We gave it two shots, that's more than most people. But I won't care if she's just taken a bullet to her heart, when she runs away from you again and you can't finish your next novel because thinking about her hurts too much. I won't go easy on you, I'll just cut you loose next time."

"Fair enough." Rick nodded.

"It's getting late," Gina announced checking her watch, "and I'm hungry. How about we stop here and pick up again in the morning? Maybe Jared has come up with a solution by then as well."

"Sounds good to me?" Rick looked at Paula who nodded. They started to gather their personal belongings and threw out the trash.

"Wait a moment!" Paula suddenly said, "Did you just say Kate works in DC now?"

"About that, I was going to tell you tonight but then you two got sidetracked fighting over who gets to behead Jared."

"Richard Edgar Castle," Paula hissed and moved to block his exit to the door, "when were you going to tell me that you're moving to DC?"

Dammit, Rick thought. So close. So very close. This was going to be a long night. _If_ he was going to make it out alive of this meeting at all. He wondered if Ryan and Esposito would find his mangled body in a dark side alley in the wee hours of tomorrow morning.


	4. Chapter 4

When Kate arrived at the gym the next morning, Rachel and Matt were already there warming up. Since she had already completed her morning run along the Potomac, Beckett quickly changed into her work out clothes and wrapped her hands for the punching bag.

Matt let out a wolf whistle, when she returned from the locker room. "Well, Nikki, you certainly live up to your last name."

Kate just rolled her eyes and walked right past him.

"Ignore him." Rachel sent her colleague a dirty look. "You know there's a fine line between rookie hazing and sexual harassment. Try not to make her file a complaint against you by the end of her first week, ok?"

"Killjoy," Matt grumbled and nodded at his partner to take up her position on the mat.

Beckett checked her tapes, before she let her right fist connect with the sandbag. She was determined not to show how much the Nikki Heat teasing was actually grating on her nerves, so hitting the bag was a very welcome outlet for her frustrations. She could hear Rachel and Matt engage in a sparring session behind her back, while she buried her fists into the punching bag again and again.

A few minutes later, McCord called her over, "How about replacing your punching bag with a moving target?" She grinned and pointed her thumb over her shoulder at Hendricks.

Kate nodded and checked her wraps.

"Alright, Nikki, show us what you've got." Matt grinned at her and went into a defensive position. Beckett danced a little around the cocky senior agent, studying his moves and body postures. Then she feigned an attack on his left but actually kicked her right leg behind the hollow of his knees, and effectively swiped his legs from under him.

Matt wheezed and looked at their newest agent shocked. Rachel's face appeared in his vision, blocking his view of Beckett, as his colleague grinned at him. "Told ya, she could take you down blindfolded. Pay up!"

"I'm not done with her yet." Matt sprung back into action and shoved McCord out of his way. "Alright, Nikki, it's on."

Beckett blocked his attacks as best as she could, hissing in between, "You. Know. That. Nikki. Heat. Is. A. Fictional. Character. Don't. You?"

"Wouldn't know from they way Rookie is crushing on you." Matt grinned back, and, finding Kate's weak spot in her defense, managed a hit and brought her down on her knees. Beckett tapped out, seeing no way of launching a counter attack. "Just let me know when you're ready to capitulate."

"Hope you've got time," Kate pulled her arm back when Matt released it and jumped back to her feet, "I'm not a quitter."

"Neither am I." Hendricks cocked his head. There was something in Beckett's eyes that told him this was more than a line for her. They'd all read her file, even though no one but Rachel was supposed to. Of course they knew about the attempt on her life, and her quick recovery and return to work. They also knew about her mother's murder, and really, it was a matter of public record anyway. They could have looked it up on the internet, her file just had the reader's digest version.

"Care to raise the stakes? Two out of three. If I win, you stop calling me Nikki."

"And if I win?"

"I won't file that sexual harassment suit."

"Oh, you're on, _Nikki_."

Rachel interrupted the staring contest between her colleagues. "If you're going to keep up with us, you gotta work on your defense, Beckett. Your skills are really good, but you have this combination you like to use when you attack. It's like a rhythm. That gave Matt the advantage to anticipate your next move, find the weakness in your balance and take you down."

Kate nodded, waiting and hoping on further instruction how to improve her close combat skills.

"Now, if you change your stance like this," McCord moved behind her and adjusted her feet position, "you make it harder for Matt to find purchase to throw you off your balance." To prove her point, Hendricks kicked his leg into the side of Kate's kneecap, so she could feel the impact.

"Good, very good." Rachel nodded. "And now instead of the left-right-left-left combination you like to use so much, how about you go like this?" Rachel stepped away from behind Kate, so she could demonstrate with Matt the new move. "The left-right-left-left is a nice combo to use as a surprise but if you return to it like clockwork, it's no more effective than a right hook."

Kate nodded and took up her position again, this time as the aggressor. She scored a couple of hits against Hendricks but wasn't able to bring him down, when she heard noise at the back of the room.

She glanced up for a nanosecond to assess the situation and then connected her fist with Matt's jaw, eliciting a groan from him. He'd still been distracted by Richmond's entrance, and Kate took advantage of his lack of focus to score a point. Before he knew what hit him, Kate grasped his arm, moved it behind his back at an awkward angle as she rounded him and with a quick press of her heel into his kneecap, Hendricks was kneeling in front of her wincing and whimpering.

Kate's only mistake was to relax her hold on him after a triumphant cry of "Ha!", which Matt immediately used to his own advantage. Freeing his hand from her grip, he swiveled around on his knees, using his momentum to head butt Kate into her stomach. A slight ooof left her mouth with a rush of breath as she recovered from the blow that caused her to stagger slightly back. By the time she'd regained her composure, Hendricks was already back on his feet, locking the side of his leg behind her knees and unsettled Kate's balance with one swift swipe across her legs. Beckett looked almost comical as she floundered backwards, looking for purchase in vain, landing hard on her back. Matt followed her to make sure she stayed down but before he could secure the position, Kate rolled onto her side, taking hold of his legs. With a quick jerk of his right leg and a head butt into his groin, Matt folded like a sack of potatoes.

Kate jumped back up to her feet, eyeing Matt suspiciously but her sparring partner tapped the mat to indicate he was out. His eyes were squeezed shut and his breath came in short pants accompanied by suppressed groans. When Beckett looked up, she stared into the open-mouthed, horrified face of Richmond, who'd quickly put his own hands across his crotch protectively.

"Nice one." Rachel nodded at Kate. "Though we don't usually head butt our colleagues in the groin. We don't want the office to get sued by angry wives. Luckily for you, Matt's an old hound dog, so no women will be complaining if he's out of commission for a while."

"Funny. Not." Matt moaned.

Kate stepped forward and tipped Matt's head back with the tip of her index finger on his forehead, "It's Agent _Beckett_."

Matt closed his eyes and grinned, "You look very hot when you role play, _Detective_ Heat."

Kate rolled her eyes and looked over at Rachel who threw her hands up into the air. "Is he always that stupid or is it something I said?"

"Bet's a bet, Matt. Honor it." McCord glared at her cocky colleague. Seriously what the hell was wrong with him?

"Ah but the deal was two out of three. And right now it's one each, and besides, you cheated, Nikki." Hendricks defended himself.

"In your dreams!" Kate growled, "I won fair and square. Not my fault you've got the attention span of a squirrel."

Matt narrowed his eyes at Beckett, while they heard Rachel and Richmond snicker in the background.

"Squirrel. I like that one." McCord chuckled.

"Ahh, but you forget that your first take down didn't really count since I disarmed you. That's what you get for showing weakness."

"Aright, Squirrel. Off the mat." McCord started to diffuse the situation before their morning would be spent discussing technicalities. "No one won the bet then. Rookie, your turn."

Richmond looked up and shook his head vehemently. "I can't."

Thinking he might have been slightly intimidated by her take down of Hendricks, Kate smiled at him. "Don't worry. I don't bite." He still looked completely aghast at the idea of fighting her, his head shaking from side to side. "I only head butt." Kate deadpanned but the joke didn't have its desired effect.

"Not your call, Rookie. On the mat in three or I'll write you up for insubordination."

"Please, Rachel. Don't make me fight her!" He looked at her pleadingly. "She's…" He lowered his voice, "_Nikki Heat_. I can't hurt Nikki. Don't make me hurt Nikki."

Before Rachel could respond, Kate stalked over to the other side of the gym and grabbed Richmond by his arm, a little bit too violently. "Let's be clear, Rookie. I'm not Nikki Heat, I'm not a doll, I won't break, you're not gonna hurt me with our little sparring session. I've been blown up and frozen and shot at, I think I can deal with your rookie moves."

Richmond throw a pleading look over his shoulder, asking Rachel silently for help. McCord shook her head. Even if she wanted to put an end to the situation, she knew that Kate was now on a mission to prove to Rookie that she was one of them and not the fragile princess of his wet dreams.

"Hit me with your best." Kate took up her position and encouraged Rookie to be the aggressor. Her brain would replay the next moments in slow motion for days to come, but she would not be able to figure out where she had gone wrong. In fifteen seconds flat, Kate Beckett found herself pinned down on the mattress with Richmond sitting on top of her, cutting off her airflow.

Seeing the panic rise in Kate's eyes, as she wildly tapped her hand on the mat, Richmond let go and looked accusingly at Rachel and Matt. "You didn't tell her?!"

Kate's hand immediately flew to her throat, rubbing the skin. "Tell me what?" She wheezed out. "Geez, Rookie. What the fuck is wrong with you?" She coughed and the burning sensation in her throat brought back unpleasant memories from a rooftop a little over a year ago. "Where'd you learn that?"

"I know, I know. Nerd like me with skills like that? Let's just say my father and brothers have shown me a couple of moves over the years."

"Seriously?" Kat eyed her new colleague suspiciously.

"My dad's a green beret. My older brother is a marine. My younger brother is a seal." Rookie grinned at her and deadpanned. "This is how we cuddle in my family!" Richmond held out his hand to help her up. "You ok? I tried not to squeeze too hard but it's like a reflex to me."

Kate let out a nervous chuckle, "And here I thought you were scared of me because I almost castrated Matt."

"That _did_ look painful!" Richmond laughed. "But no. And I thought you must be slightly insane to be so gung-ho to spar with me but seeing as those two clowns didn't tell you," he shot Rachel and Matt a dirty glare, "it makes so much more sense."

All of a sudden all their phones went off, causing each team member to raise their eyebrows in surprise at each other.

"Alright. Hit the shower folks, looks like this one's a biggie. I'll take the call."

Fifteen minutes later, Agent McCord's team was sitting behind their computers, phones tucked under their chins, running traces on phones, financial records and checking databases. They hadn't been told any details but apparently there had been a security breach at the NSA and it was all hands on deck. The eighth floor was abuzz with activity, as people ran from cubicle to cubicle shouting commands at each other. Kate could already tell that the next few days would be crazy if they couldn't track down their traitor right away and the shit would really hit the fan, if the press found out and their worst fears came true and they were on the brink of another act of terrorism.


	5. Chapter 5

Beckett spent the next few days with McCord in the car canvassing neighborhoods and checking up on leads along with the other teams. Right now they were on their way back from Arlington, after following up another lead in Crystal City that brought them nowhere.

Kate sighed in frustration. She'd need to call Castle and cancel their weekend plans. Unless they caught whoever was behind the security leak in the next two days, she'd have no day off. As of now, they'd been only told the bare minimum of information. A red flag at NSA headquarters was triggered over the past few days when journalists started making inquiries about some top secret government programs. Neither Kate nor Rachel or any other team for that matter were told which programs or what they were for, as this information was above their pay grade, but it started to look more and more like an inside job.

Right now, the members of the AG's task force teams were cross-referencing employee records and verifying their whereabouts, one by one. Rachel and Kate had been following up on Mark Bennett, who worked for a DoD contractor but a quick knock on the neighbor's door revealed that Mark Bennett had rushed home to Iowa to be with his wife while she gave birth to their first child.

The silence in the SUV was interrupted by McCord's phone.

"Go ahead Matt, you're on speaker."

"Have you seen the news?"

"Nope, we're in the car on our way back to the office." Rachel replied.

"The secret's out. It's all over the news." Matt explained, "Apparently the _Guardian_ broke the story about how the American government spies on its own citizens."

"Shut the front door!" Kate shouted and exchanged equally stupefied looks with Rachel.

"Are you serious?" Rachel asked.

"Dead serious! It's like a beehive here. Get back as fast as you can. It's all hands on deck until we catch this guy. Meanwhile, Rookie's gonna send Kate a summary to brief you on what we've been able to piece together from media outlets and our own research."

"Ok. We should be there in about twenty."

"See you when you get here. Bye." Hendricks hung up and Kate's phone vibrated indicating the arrival of a new mail. She swiped her thumb across the screen to access her mail program and quickly opened the message from Richmond.

"Okay, we've still got no name but Hollister's team seems to have narrowed down the list of suspects to employees from Booz Allen Hamilton, a contractor at the NSA. They're still checking all their employee records but there are thousands of them and it's quite impossible to pick out a needle from the haystack. Provided, it even _was_ someone from Booz Allen Hamilton. I'm not sure I buy into Hollister's reasoning but we've got to start somewhere." Kate relayed the information to her new partner.

"Does it say anything about the information leaked?"

"Yep, nothing concrete on the rumored government program, but the _Guardian_ printed a story about a court order, which revealed how the government cracked down on Verizon to release confidential phone records of customers."

"Shit, this is… bigger than we thought." McCord cast Kate a glance.

"Yep, there goes our weekend." Kate huffed. She'd definitely have to call Castle now and tell him he could stay in New York. "At least it's not a terrorist attack."

"Big plans with your fiancé?" Rachel raised her eyebrows in question.

"What?" Kate looked at her confused.

Rachel tipped her ring finger, "Weekend plans with your man?"

"No, I mean yes. But not like that. We were supposed to look at apartments on Saturday. We're still looking for a place."

"You know that the department can help you with that? We've got such a high turnover of government employees, they're leasing apartments to new employees temporarily."

"I know but I want to avoid moving a lot and he wants to own the place. We've got our stuff pretty much packed up in NYC and we're living in a hotel suite right now, but I'd just like to find a place and settle down again. I hate living out of suitcases."

McCord raised her eyebrows, when Kate mentioned the suite but judging from the engagement ring the other woman was wearing, her fiancé could probably afford to foot the bill.

"Do you have your eyes set on a particular neighborhood?" Rachel asked.

"We thought buying a townhouse in Georgetown might be nice. That's close enough for a short commute to work."

"Sure, if you can afford it."

"Where do you live?"

"Near Alexandria. I took advantage of the housing offered by the agency. It's fairly cheap for the location and only a short drive to work."

"But you're renting."

"Leasing but yeah. Are you sure you wanna buy? In _this_ economy?"

Kate shrugged her shoulders.

"You'll spend five years in DC at best before you get reassigned, assuming you want to be promoted and not remain the lowest man on the totem pole for the rest of your life?"

"I thought we work directly for the AG? Doesn't that require us to be stationed in DC?"

Rachel shrugged her shoulders, "Politics. People tend to get tired of it and eager to move on to greener pastures."

"How long have you been doing this job?"

"About a year, little over a year."

"What did you do before?"

"I worked WIT-SEC as a US Marshall in Arizona a couple years and then for the bureau here in the Metro area, before they recruited me for this job." Rachel explained.

"Do you like it?"

"Hell yeah!" McCord grinned at her, "I thrive on the adrenaline when we get cases like this. Makes you feel kind of important protecting a whole nation and not just one lousy witness."

Kate nodded slowly.

"What about you? Like it here so far?"

Kate shrugged her shoulders, "Haven't been here long enough to form an opinion, honestly."

"Fair enough," McCord replied, "you'll like it, you'll see. When I started a year ago in another team, it took me a while to get used to being part of a team and not leading it." Beckett raised her eyebrows in surprise but let the other woman continue. "It's weird I know, so really the way I've been handling our team is as far as I'm concerned we're all equals. Well except for Rookie, he's well… you know. But you and Matt have all put in considerable time as team leaders yourself, so don't hold back."

"Ok."

"I mean it. You got a theory, you share it with the team. You turn up a lead, it's yours and you run it down. There's only one rule: you don't go rogue. If you've got something, you share it with a partner. You never go anywhere without back up. I've read your file, Beckett, and you have a tendency to bend the rules and investigate on your own. Your previous captains wrote you up for going rogue a couple of times."

"Those were special circumstances." Kate interjected.

"Doesn't matter, Kate. I don't care much for who gets the credit at the end of the day, but someone on my team gets hurt, my head rolls. This is not the NYPD, this is no longer a playground. And I like my pretty head just where it is. Do you understand me?"

"Yessir." Beckett replied instinctively, which cracked McCord up.

"Oh we've got to train _that_ out of you."

"Sorry, reflex." _Damn you, Gates!_

"It's alright, as long as we're clear."

"No running around with scissors unsupervised, got it." Kate joked.

"I'm not kidding, Beckett. The stakes in DC are higher. Here you don't just get written up for insubordination and suspended for a few months without pay. You screw up, they fire you. End of story. And let me tell you, you get fired by the AG, your career is basically over. If you're lucky, you'll find a job as some sheriff somewhere in Montana. At best."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Good, because as long as you're on my team, you're my responsibility. If I catch you investigating on your own, you're off the team. So whatever little investigation you've been running out of your old precinct regarding your mother's murder, it's got to stop. I can't have that."

Beckett gasped and looked at McCord shocked.

"What?" Rachel turned her head and glanced at Kate, "You think I'm stupid? You may have been able to smuggle your little secret past your previous captains but I can read and I can put two and two together. I may not know who it is, but I know you've gotten yourself in way over your head."

"It's over." Kate sighed. "I know who did it and why, that's _all_ I ever wanted."

"Don't lie to me, Beckett." McCord stopped at a red light and glared at Kate. "We both know _all_ you ever wanted was take his life in exchange for your mother's." There was a glint smoldering in Rachel's eyes that startled Beckett. She recognized the slow burning ember of vengeance from years looking into the mirror. Kate wondered if she'd just inadvertently uncovered the first peel of the McCord onion. What she found was not what she'd expected. From the looks of it, and especially the way she'd said it, Rachel McCord experienced something similar as she had that put her on her own personal vendetta.

"He's untouchable. There's nothing I can do about it anyway, so you don't have to worry."

"Is he still coming after you?" McCord glanced at Kate, "I need to know that to keep my team safe."

"No, we've reached… an agreement of sorts." Kate explained. "And FYI, you're wrong. I had the chance to kill him twice, and he's still running around very much alive."

"That is… commendable and probably not what I would have done in your place but it doesn't change facts. In reality, it probably makes you want to see him behind bars even more. But I'm warning you, if I catch you using federal resources for your personal vendetta, I'll have your ass for dinner, Beckett. Are we clear?"

Beckett nodded. Damn, why hadn't she thought about that before? In all her deliberating of whether to take the job or not, she'd not once thought about the possibility of going after Bracken. She'd been so caught up in the mess she'd made with Castle, it hadn't occurred to her that a job with the AG meant new resources like free access to federal databases and leverage to finally take down her mother's killer. "Crystal clear. Anything else?"

"Yes, lose those heels!"

"What?!" Kate looked horrified.

"I don't care how well you can run in those heels across the streets of New York, they're a liability. I don't want to lose my suspect because you sprained your ankle."

Kate almost scowled, "I've been chasing suspects for _years_ in those heels and not once I lost one because of them. I need those heels, they ground me as a cop. They're who I am!"

"Ah, but you're no longer a detective, are you?" McCord looked at her pointedly, before she turned off the street to pull into the garage of their office building. Kate grumbled something about technicalities and Montana being a nice place around this time of the year.


	6. Chapter 6

Thank you all for the continued interest in this story. Every single one of your comments and favs and follows makes my day! I'm really glad people a liking this story so much. I do apologize for the typos and errors, I'm writing and posting as fast as I can.

* * *

Instead of her long-awaited weekend with Castle, Beckett spent Friday night in an unmarked car with Hendricks parked outside a brownstone building. McCord and Richmond were hiding around the corner in a surveillance van camouflaged as a carpet cleaning company.

They were currently waiting for Jessica Flinn, former senior analyst at Booz Allen Hamilton, who had dropped off the face of the earth three months ago, after she'd been let go. Initially, Flinn had refused to accept her severance package and threatened to sue the company for wrongful termination of contract. Two days later she disappeared, never to be heard again. Through friends and casual acquaintances they were able to track down a former boyfriend in Richmond, Virginia, where she might have gone into hiding. Therefore, Rachel had packed up Rookie and his toys in the surveillance van earlier in the afternoon to make the two-hour trip to the capital of Virginia. Matt and Kate trailed behind them in the dark sedan and parked on the opposite street side in the quiet residential neighborhood where Jessica Flinn presumably waited for the storm to blow over. That was four hours ago and no one had entered or left the building.

Kate's phone started ringing and she quickly pulled the device out of her back pocket to decline the call. Before she could put it on silent, a series of loud pings resonated through the car, indicating a couple of new text messages.

"Sorry," Beckett smiled an apology and opened her texts.

"That your fiancé?"

Her what? She looked at Matt dumbfounded for a split second before she recalled the ring that adorned her left hand now. She'd been wearing it ever since Castle slipped it on her ring finger in the park, almost over a month ago… well except for the few weeks in Quantico, when she was wrestling through mud and obstacle courses. It still felt so new and Kate hadn't fully processed the fundamental changes to her life she'd made in the past few months. She considered lying to Matt for a brief moment but then realized they'd find out about her engagement after the book launch party and he'd already seen the ring anyway. And it's not like she was hiding it from anyone, she'd just prefer they didn't know who her fiancé was yet.

"Uhh, yes."

"Must be hard," Matt commented.

"Why?"

"You here, he back in New York."

"What makes you think? He's actually moving to DC with me."

"I just assumed, since you haven't introduced us yet."

Beckett let out a humorless laugh, "You mean like you introduced me to your girlfriends."

"Unfortunately there's no one to introduce since that position is currently vacant, though if you want to volunteer…"

"Engaged, remember?" Beckett cut him off, holding up her ring finger. "Is that why you're trying so hard? You want to see if you can show the new girl a good time while she's pining away for her guy who stayed behind?"

"What? No." Matt shook his head. "I just want to torture Rookie a little bit. See if I can get you out on a date before him."

"Good to know I don't get a say in who gets to date me. Listen carefully, because I'm only going to say this once. Just because we're working together, we're not going to be BFFs. We haven't even been working together for a week, there'll be no after work drinks huddled around a bar where you get to make fun of me and my boyfriend. And for the record, I am _very_ happy in the relationship I'm in right now. And even if I were single, I wouldn't date you if you were the last man on earth."

"Ouch, you wound me, Nikki. Was it something I said?"

"You just answered your own question." Kate huffed.

"So who's the lucky guy?" Matt asked unperturbed.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Kate gave him a saccharine smile.

"Oh come on, Beckett, we're on the same team. Throw a guy a bone. What's his name? At least let me know my competition."

Beckett's only reply was her famous eye-roll. Matt Hendricks must suffer from selective hearing syndrome. Her phone started vibrating in her hand. She didn't even have to look to know it was Castle again. Unfortunately an oncoming car bathed the interior of their sedan in just enough light for Hendricks to make out Castle's face and name on her display, before she pressed him away.

Matt raised an eyebrow looking at Kate with renewed interest, but she didn't notice, since she was busy declining his call.

"You should take it." Hendricks said.

"What?" Kate's head snapped up when she noticed the change in tone from her new partner. The teasing was gone and replaced by something she couldn't quite pinpoint. A certain somberness and... comprehension?

"Seriously. Go ahead make that call."

She wasn't going to talk to Rick with Hendricks eavesdropping beside her. She could only imagine what he would do if he found out she was marrying Richard Castle.

"At least send him a text saying you're alright and on a stake out. No sense in making him worry. Poor guy's probably half sick by now because you've gone incommunicado." There was something in Hendricks' voice that gave Kate the distinct feeling Matt knew what he was talking about. Maybe she'd pegged him wrong. He may not have a current girlfriend but he was probably speaking from experience. Forming relationships while a cop in New York was tough enough, she could only imagine what it must be like to date when you work for the feds. Every couple of months a new assignment would take you halfway across the country and communication would essentially be cut off as long as the case was hot.

Beckett frowned at Matt, not knowing what to say. Why was he being so nice to her all of a sudden? Her phone started ringing in her hand again.

"Go ahead, take it. I'm not even here." He nodded at her encouragingly. "I promise I won't tease you about your fiancé, Nikki, as long as you don't go all lovey-dovey on me."

"Hey," Beckett finally accepted the call with another one of her trademark eye-rolls and greeted her fiancé. She'd keep it short and sweet, avoid names and other personal references and keep Matt as much in the dark about her love life as possible.

"_Hey! Yes, my name is Richard Castle and I'd like to file a missing persons report. I'm looking for my fiancée; she's a beautiful, gorgeous brunette, about 5 feet 9, with legs that go on forever. At first I thought she was just busy at work, and you have to wait 24 hours before you can file an official report anyway, then I thought she was just ignoring my calls but now it's been three days and I'm starting to worry she's decomposing in a hidden alcove at one of your countless memorials in your beautiful city."_

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"_What's going on, Kate? You never have time to talk. I left you like a hundred messages. You never pick up the phone anymore when I call. Is this how it's going to be from now on?"_

"I said I'm sorry. I can't really talk right now," Kate was careful to leave out Castle's name, which was already on the tip of her tongue, "I'm on a stake out."

"_With whom? Fan girl?"_

"Nope", Kate glanced at Hendricks in the driver's seat next to her, "with Squirrel."

Matt snapped his head around and glared at her. She shrugged at him as if to say, 'What? Long as you keep calling me Nikki, I keep calling you Squirrel.'

"_What? Who?"_

Rick's voice brought her attention back to the phone call. "Hendricks. Long story, I'll tell you when I see you next."

"_The guy who keeps calling you Nikki?"_

"Uh-huh."

"_Let me talk to him."_

"What? No!" Kate objected vociferously, "Why'd you want to do that?"

"_Because he's on a stake out with you, and I'm your old partner, so I know a little bit about keeping you safe and I want him to know, partner to partner, that if anything happens to you, he's got me to answer to."_

"Yeah, so not gonna happen."

"_Ok. Well at least that explains why you're not here to pick me up."_

"Huh?"

"_It's _Friday_."_ Castle said as if that explained everything.

"So?"

"_So, I was hoping for a nice little welcome when I got off the plane but since you're apparently at a stake out, I guess I'll just catch a cab to the hotel. I texted you the flight details this morning, I shouldn't be surprised though, seeing as you didn't respond to any of my texts, calls or e-mails this week."_

"Oh no! Rick, I'm so sorry. I completely forgot about that!"

"_So I noticed."_

"I'm so sorry, I should have called to let you know I can't do this weekend. We caught this really high profile case and it's all hands on deck until we catch the guy."

Castled sighed heavily into his phone, _"Will I at least see you this weekend?"_

"I don't know," Kate sighed, too. "Things have been just crazy this week. Ever since the news leak, we've been working around the clock to find out whoever is behind the NSA security breach."

"_You're kidding, you're working on _that_ case?"_ Castle's voice filled with excitement. _"Seriously?"_

"Seriously. But you know I can't talk about cases with you anymore."

"_I know but this is so cool. My fiancé is hunting the traitor-turned-folk-hero everyone is talking about."_

Kate rolled her eyes. "I'm glad you take the news that we can't spend the weekend together so well."

"_Yes, no, wait. It's not like that. Of course, I'm upset I won't get to see you. Do you want me to fly back to New York?"_

Kate pondered her decision for a minute. It wasn't really fair to have him cooped up in the hotel suite waiting to see her for the fifteen minutes it would take her to shower and change clothes.

"I don't know. When do you have to be back?"

"_Actually, I don't have to be back until Thursday. I thought maybe you could take next Friday off and fly back with me, attend the party on Saturday and then come back Sunday night. But if you have to work because of this security leak, I'd understand."_

"We'll see. I really do hope we catch the guy before next Saturday or we might all be out of a job due to incompetence." That reminded Kate that with all the chaos this week, she hadn't even gotten a chance to talk to Rachel about next Saturday.

"_Hey, if anyone can sniff out that guy's whereabouts it's you."_

"Thank you for your vote of confidence but we've been doing background checks on all former employees who might hold a grudge and it's one dead end after another."

"_What makes you think it's a former employee? That's so cliché. If I wrote the story, I'd create a modern day anti-hero. Small guy, caught in the big wheels of government, discovers how the government he's sworn to protect spies on its own citizens on a grand scale, violating people's privacy 'for their own good'."_

Kate continued, "He keeps silent as long as he can but eventually his conscience wins out and he goes public with what he knows. But that's insane, he must know that they'll come after him and prosecute him to the full extent of the law."

"_Right, so he plans every little detail long in advance. He gathers as much evidence as he can, then quietly leaves with nobody none the wiser. Goes on vacation or quits his job amicably. Waits a few days to make sure the coast is clear. The point is the less attention he draws to himself the better."_

"Right because he wants out of the country. Preferably somewhere with no extradition treaty to the US where he might be court martialed and the death penalty is looming over his head. He may very well be a former employee but he'd have left on his own terms, we're looking in the wrong direction."

Kate glanced at Hendricks to check if he'd been listening in on her conversation. Matt winced apologetically at her and nodded, already reaching for his phone to call Rachel. Their investigation may have just finally gotten on track.

"Run down the last known travel itineraries of the journalists from _The Guardian_ who broke the story. I remember their background check showed recent overseas travel. I bet they met with the traitor in person. Doing it over Skype or even an encrypted line would have been too high a risk."

Matt nodded, "Already on it. Rachel already has Richmond cross-referencing employee records with flight manifests to see if any names pop for recent overseas travel in the last few weeks."

"_You have to go."_ Castle sighed as the same time as Kate said, "Gotta go."

"Be safe, Kate. I love you." Castle crooned into the speaker and made Kate smile.

She lowered her head and spoke quietly into the phone, "Always."


	7. Chapter 7

"How come Hollister's team gets to go to Hawaii and we have to interview junkie roommates?" Hendricks complained as he and Beckett secured the hallway of the tenth floor of an apartment complex in the Dupont Circle neighborhood.

"Seniority?" Kate guessed and shrugged her shoulders.

"It's a _new_ task force, Heat. We've got no seniority, period."

"Look at the bright side. No jet lag and you can't whine about seeing the beautiful beaches without actually enjoying them."

"Oh great, you're one of those glass always half-full people, aren't you?"

"Not really. I bet it's insanely hot in Hawaii right now anyway."

"Oh you mean unlike this city?" Hendricks swept his hand around him. Suddenly he came to a stop and nodded. 10D. They'd reached the right door. He knocked three times and announced their presence to Christopher Fields, roommate of Steven McEntire. The latter was one of five names Rookie's magical algorithms spit out on a list of most likely suspects with recent international travel. Steven McEntire, who was officially on vacation in Venezuela, was also a mid-level data analyst at Booz Allen Hamilton. They had already contacted local law enforcement to apprehend McEntire, but in the meantime they were going to question McEntire's friends and especially his roommate about his recent activities and whereabouts.

A quick background check of Christopher Fields, the roommate, revealed two prior convictions for drug trafficking – interesting living arrangements for a government spy to say the least. Castle would have already started spinning theories about Colombian drug syndicates with Steven McEntire as the mule by now. She kind of missed that, even though she used to complain about it all the time. And like any good junkie who was about to questioned by the feds, Christopher Fields did what came natural to all criminal lowlife. He tried to make a run for it.

The noisy rumble inside tipped off the two feds still waiting outside the door. Matt held up three fingers and motioned for Kate to take up her position on the other side. After a quick nod, he counted down silently, before he kicked down the door.

"NYPD, don't move!" Kate yelled as she spotted someone making a move to the window. Fields stopped dead in his tracks, arms held up disarmingly, right in front of the window. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, as he glanced between Kate Beckett and Matt Hendricks in his doorway and the 200 grams of coke on his coffee table.

Hendricks frowned next to Beckett and lowered his gun for a split second, "Wh…"

"Shut up!" Kate hissed and glanced at her new partner. Matt chuckled. Their suspect took advantage of their break in concentration and ducked out the window.

"Fuck!" Matt let out an expletive and already turned around, while Kate holstered her weapon and followed their perp out the window. "He's making a run for the fire escape. I'll cut him off at the other end."

"Wait!" Kate yelled and stuck her head back inside through the window, "He's heading to the roof, better get to the top."

Hendricks nodded and dashed out of the apartment, while Beckett climbed up the fire escape. When she reached the end, she took a deep breath and told herself she could do this. This was just your average junkie roommate who got spooked when they canvassed the neighborhood. He was _not_ Maddox; he wasn't even armed. Still Kate peered carefully over the edge, and only after she made sure the air was clear, she pulled herself on top of the building. She spun around, quickly assessing the situation. The rooftop was empty, neither Matt nor their suspect was in sight. Instinctually Beckett crouched behind a chimney and pulled out her gun. Peering around the corner to ensure safe passage, she quickly crossed the roof to hide behind another concrete column.

Where the hell was Hendricks? Ryan and Esposito would have long caught up with her, not to mention Castle who would have leaped out of the window hot on her heels, no matter how many times she would have yelled at him to wait inside. Kate reached for her walkie-talkie and relayed her position and a rough description of their suspect.

The device crackled a few seconds before Rachel's voice ordered her to wait for back up. What back up, Kate thought. As if she'd read her mind, McCord told her they'd taken up position in the alley on the east side of the building. When Beckett looked up to the sun to orientate herself, a sliver of movement on the north side of the roof caught her eye. Gotcha! She grinned and trained her weapon on the man in the green sweater. Lifting her radio again, she informed that she had her eyes on the suspect now and was in pursuit.

The radio crackled and Rachel ordered Kate to hold her position until Matt joined her. Hendricks, what the fuck is taking you so long? Wanting to have a better visual of their perp, Kate crawled behind a few pipes to close the distance between them.

"Hendricks, where the hell are you?" Kate spoke into her radio but got no response. The man in the green sweater was now ducking behind another set of pipes, making his way to the edge of the rooftop.

"Suspect on the move. I repeat, suspect's on the move."

"Hold your position and wait for back up, Beckett. I'm on my way."

"Negative." Kate replied, as realization dawned on her, "He's going to jump across the alley to the other building. We're losing him."

Beckett rose and turned once around her own axis to assure herself that Hendricks was still nowhere in sight. If she didn't take up pursuit of the suspect, they'd lose the only good lead they had on Steven McEntire. She _had_ to take in his roommate who could provide them with important information about McEntire's whereabouts. How would that reflect on her if she'd let a suspect, well, viable witness, escape on her first week on the job. They'd never let her hear the end of it and the teasing would only increase. No thank you very much, the Nikki Heat hazing was enough, she wouldn't give them more ammunition by letting their suspect flee.

Holstering her radio and turning it off to avoid making her presence known, Beckett trained her weapon on the suspect who had his back on her now, as he was contemplating the jump across the alley. A rattling noise drew their attention to where they'd come up the fire escape. McCord must be climbing the steps as fast as she could but it was too late. She'd already spooked their perp, who now noticed Beckett approaching him.

"Give up, Christopher. It's over." Beckett pleaded with the suspect. "We just want to talk to you."

"It's a trick, I know how you work. You're just going to twist my words in my mouth."

"I don't care about your substance abuse, I just want to talk about your roommate Steven." Kate kept her weapon trained on him, while she strode along the edge of the rooftop, cutting off his escape route. Not that he was likely to jump without at least a little running start, and even that was still mostly a suicide mission.

"Stop!" Fields warned Kate and took a few steps backwards.

"I just want to talk, Christopher. I'm going to lower my weapon ok?"

Fields took another couple of steps backwards, when another voice carried across the rooftop.

"Freeze!" It was McCord who pointed her gun at Fields from where she peered over the edge of the rooftop.

Panicking, Fields' eyes darted between the two women before he took a deep breath and took a running jump off the building. Kate gasped and leaned over the edge, watching Christopher Fields land with a squat on the next roof. Without missing a beat, Kate holstered her weapon and took a running start.

"Beckett!" she heard McCord call out behind her but Kate was already in the air.

Her eyes widened in horror, when she realized that Field was now standing on the other rooftop, holding a gun. Shit, shit, shit. Where the hell had that come from? There was nothing she could do but hope that he had bad aim. When the first shot fired, Beckett was in mid-jump across the narrow alley between the buildings. Thank god for narrow alleys. Not risking a second shot, Kate pulled her own gun and fired it. Once. Twice. The third bullet finally made impact with Fields' shoulder, causing him to lose his balance and his hold on the weapon. It clattered to the floor at the same moment Kate's feet touched ground. To soften the impact, Beckett rolled over and took up position to fire in a crouch. However, Fields was still down for the count. Moaning and whimpering he held his shoulder, where Beckett's bullet had grazed him.

"Christopher Fields," Kate spoke as she rose and leaned over he suspect. Holding her gun to his temple, she continued, "You're under arrest for discharging a firearm, obstruction of justice and resisting a law enforcement officer and what I'm sure are half a dozen or so substance abuse violations." Beckett panted. Fields wriggled around, trying to escape her grip of him, as best as he could despite his wounded shoulder.

"What? But you said you weren't interested in the drugs!" Fields protested.

"That was before you took a pot shot at me, jackass!"

"Beckett, you ok?" She heard a male voice behind her.

"Richmond?" Kate replied astonished never taking her eyes off Fields. "What are you doing here?"

"Yep, here." Rookie's face appeared on the edge of her vision holding out his handcuffs. "I'm your back up!" He beamed, "That was _amazing_! The way you jumped and… he shot… and then you fired… and then you landed and and and…"

Never one to know when to give up, Fields tried once more to release Kate's grasp on him, and wriggled his good arm free to reach for the gun he'd dropped, before Richmond would be able to put the cuffs on him.

"Go ahead and resist, I need the practice." A very pissed off Kate Beckett hissed and pressed the gun firmer against his temple, leaving a mark.

Rookie gaped at Kate, before he snapped out of his reverie and handcuffed their suspect. "Christopher Fields, you have the right to remain silent. You also have the right to an attorney, should you find yourself unable to afford one, we'll provide one for you. Now get up, before I ruin my new suit." Richmond jerked Fields off the ground, who groaned at the manhandling of his injured shoulder.

"Hey!" A breathless Hendricks joined them. "You started the party without me!"

"Matthew! Where the _fuck_ have you been?" Kate let go of Fields, trusting Rookie to take care of him, and charged into Hendricks.

"Whoa, easy there, Nikki. I came as fast as I could. The door to the rooftop was locked and made of iron, so I head to run all the way down. Outside, I caught Rachel just as she was getting on the fire escape, so I took Rookie here to secure this building, when I saw Fields jump. I took the staircase again, Rookie took the fire escape to make sure we cut off all escape routes." Hendricks explained, still panting.

"You should have seen her!" Richmond piped up, suspect in an iron hold, "She was incredible! She went after him without batting an eyelash. And then he fired at her and she took him right out. While she was still in the air! It was just like straight out of her novels!"

Kate rolled her eyes and blew a loose strand of hair out of her face. She watched as Hendricks took hold of Fields with a chuckle and started to march their suspect to the rooftop door together with Richmond, who kept on gushing about Kate's little stunt.

0~0~0~0~0

"If you think that was awesome, you should've seen her when she barged into the apartment after me, all badass Nikki Heat and then she yelled 'NYPD, don't move!' That was priceless." Hendricks laughed when they crowded into the small elevator to go down.

"You didn't?!" Rookie grinned at Kate.

"Sure did, it was hilarious!" Hendricks insisted. "Our little escape artist here looked at her like she'd grown a second head."

"NYPD's got no jurisdiction here, so what's she doing here?" Fields piped up, as the elevator indicated they'd reached the first floor with a ping.

"Just your lucky day, Fields, that the extraordinary Detective Beckett ditched the NYPD to join the feds this week." Hendricks laughed and pushed their suspect through the open elevator doors roughly.

"Hey, I just realized this is your first arrest as an agent. We should take a picture or something," Rookie chuckled.

"Thanks, but no thanks." Kate rolled her eyes.

"And what an arrest! Seriously, Matt, you should have seen her! I was still on the fire escape, when suddenly bullets start flying above my head. I look up and there she is, mid-jump aiming at him." Rookie gave Fields a shove forwards as they exited the building still laughing.

"And then, when she had him already apprehended, he tried to make another move for his gun, so she said, 'Go ahead, I need the practice.' Just like Jameson Rook in the novel! I'm telling ya, it was awesome! That was so cool the way you imitated Rook in _Heat Wave_."

Kate grinned and protested, "Hey! Where do you think Castle go that line in the first place?"

"No way, he stole that from you?"

"Sure did!"

Their laughter died on their lips when they saw McCords stern gaze welcoming them on the sidewalk. She raised her eyebrows at the trio, then nodded for Rookie to take their suspect across the street where the paramedics were already waiting with an ambulance.

"What the fuck was that?" McCord stalked across the sidewalk, closing the distance between them.

"Fields was about to bolt, so I made a judgment call." Kate explained, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Chasing their suspect across rooftops and fire escapes had left her a tad little out of breath and her hair in a messy ponytail.

"Without proper back up?" McCord glared at Kate, "That was stupid, Beckett!"

"But I had Hendricks with me. I followed the suspect up the fire escape, since Matt was heading up the stairs to the rooftop to cut off his other exit." Kate defended herself.

"I thought I made myself clear the other day, Beckett? No going rogue!" McCord charged into Kate. "What the hell were you thinking jumping after an armed suspect like that? You're lucky you're still alive."

"I didn't know he was packing heat," Beckett explained. "And what was I supposed to do? Let him escape? He's our only strong connection to McEntire."

"What are you trying to prove, going after a suspect like that?" Rachel was not in the least mollified by her explanation.

Matt shook his head, "It's okay, Rach. She couldn't have known. I hadn't seen the gun on him, either." Of all people, Kate expected Hendricks to stick up for her last. "It was a judgment call."

"A really poor one at that. What the hell happened in there? How could you let Fields escape through the window in the first place?" She trained her anger now on Matt.

"How about we all calm down, before Rookie signs us up for family therapy with the department shrink." Hendricks tried to diffuse the situation by lightening up the mood. "He's getting real antsy."

Kate and Rachel glanced toward the young man, fidgeting behind the yellow tape.

"It was a clean shot," Rookie shouted, when he noticed three pairs of eyes watching him curiously. "I saw it all with my own eyes. Fields opened fire first, Kate was only defending her life."

McCord closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Alright, you know the drill." She held out her hand and Kate reluctantly put her weapon into it.

"Until you're cleared for the shooting, I don't want to see your face. They'll probably set up an interview sometime tomorrow, Monday morning at the latest. Take the rest of the weekend off." McCord shook her head. "That's gotta be a new record. Not even a whole week on the job and already fired her gun."

"Actually," Richmond piped up from behind the police tape, "Agent Brink's holding that record. He fired his sidearm only three hours into his… you don't really want to know that." He trailed off when he saw Hendricks and Beckett shaking their heads slowly. Right now he reminded Kate so much of Castle, when he spouted his useless little trivia tidbits at crime scenes.

"Not really," Rachel confirmed and then looked at Hendricks, "I'll take Rookie, you drop her off. Let's meet at the hospital in an hour to see if we can question Fields." With that McCord turned on her heels and joined Richmond.

"She's just pissed because of the paperwork she has to do now because of the shooting." Matt looked at Kate with a timid smile.

"Thanks for sticking up for me. Why didn't you tell her?"

Hendricks put his arm around Beckett's shoulder, drawing her a bit closer. "You think you're to blame for Fields' escape? He wanted to run, he was going to run. He would've found any number of ways and reasons to bolt, even if you hadn't slipped up."

Kate glanced at Matt's arm around her shoulders. It was a friendly gesture and yet it felt wrong. He was just trying to comfort her but she was mad at herself for giving Fields an opportunity to run.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Nikki Heat." Hendricks gave her a squeeze before he pulled his arm back. "Come on, I'll drop you off at your place, before Rachel makes me fill out all the paperwork as punishment."

Beckett looked at Hendricks, a small smile hushing over her face. Maybe Matt Hendricks wasn't such a jackass after all. And really, she was starting to get used to her new nickname. There were worse things in the world. Like letting a suspect escape.

* * *

_A/N: Just a heads up but the rating for this story will go up to M in the next chapter probably or the one after. They just won't behave and who can blame them, they're engaged after all._ ;-)_  
_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: My apologies for the long wait and the lack of smut in this chapter. My characters suddenly developed a life of their own and what started out as a little scene snowballed into this big story about Rick reminiscing about his relationship with Kate while looking at houses that I didn't even know where I should break up the chapters. I know you expected some smut, so I put in some M-rated little tidbits, but I promise the good stuff will come soon._

* * *

Richard Castle stood in front of the tall brick building, gazing at the windows of the upper stories.

"Mr. Castle?" A young man in his early thirties, wearing a Miami-Vice-style suit, approached him.

"Yes, but call me Rick," Castle reached out to shake hands with the realtor.

"I'm Skip Gibbons, we spoke on the phone earlier."

"Nice to meet you." Rick nodded.

"Shall we head inside?" Skip suggested with a nod and Castle quickly agreed. Anything, really, to get him off the hot and humid streets of the nation's capital.

"Based on what you told me in your e-mails and on the phone I picked out two condos for you to look at this morning. The first one has two bedrooms and two full bathrooms on the second floor. On the first floor we have the living area with a partial bath." Skip explained and Castle followed him inside to the elevator.

"It's a newer building from 2002, so it comes with all the amenities of modern living. The kitchen has even been remodeled in 2010 and contains state-of the-art equipment for the amateur gourmet chef: industrial fridge and island hood, Viking appliances, full range with oven and induction cook-top, dishwasher, microwave, …"

Rick had already begun to tune out the chipper voice of Skip, as images of him and Kate cooking in their kitchen on her days off flooded his mind. Since he couldn't shadow her anymore, he could prepare dinner every evening in time for her to come home. If she called to let him know she had to work late, he'd simply wrap it up in tinfoil and drop it off at her office. Or he'd convince her to drop by at home to eat quickly and then go back to work. Yeah, that last one was a bit unrealistic, dinner in the break room at her new office it was. They hadn't really talked about her new work hours, but judging from this week, they seemed to be just as erratic as in New York. But that was okay. He'd known that when he met her. Granted back then, he was part of the crazy hours she sometimes kept, but yeah… they'd find a way to deal with it. Lots of snuggling would probably help.

"The whole condo is a little under 1500 square feet and like I said the architecture is very modern." He tuned back into what the realtor was saying. The elevator doors opened and Skip let Castle exit first. "As you can see, there are three apartments on this floor, both neighbors are quiet residents. You said your girlfriend is a cop?"

"Fiancée, actually," Castle corrected the younger man, "and she's a federal agent."

"Oh, well congratulations. In any case, I'm sure she'll appreciate the quiet neighborhood. Each unit features excellent insulation. The condo is two stories," Skip grinned at Rick, before he unlocked the door, "and as you can see the living area is on the first floor."

Skip finally shut up and let Rick look around in silence. Like most modern apartments it featured lots of open space. The condo was not quite as spacious as Rick's loft in New York, but what won him immediately over were the bright open windows.

Noticing Castle's focus on the windows, Skip readily jumped back in, "The 10 feet windows bathe the room in generous light, don't they?"

Rick nodded and turned once around his own axis. The room was very…red. While he liked the red accents in his own loft, he knew Kate would balk at the brightly colored walls. That in itself would not pose a problem, they could simply repaint them with a less obnoxious color. He looked down at the hardwood floor, which was non-negotiable, and it looked to be in good condition. It was dark and rich wood, just the way Kate would pick it out.

The living area was one big room with a pretty straightforward layout. He missed the nooks and niches that his old loft offered and there was definitely not enough space to carve out a working area for him in the corner.

"Is this the only room on this floor?"

"Yes, with the exception of the kitchen, but as you can see it is a generous size. The previous owners blocked off some office space with open shelves and book cases."

Rick nodded. While he'd chosen the same trick for his loft in New York, he couldn't really see how they could make it work in this room. First of all the room was not really _that_ big, second the red walls shrunk the perceived size considerably – if he put in an office corner he wouldn't be able to shake the feeling that the walls were moving in on him while he'd write.

"I like the set up with the kitchen," Skip redirected Castle's attention to the kitchen which could be seen through the big window in the wall. "It's a separate room thanks to the wall, and yet the window allows to pass through food. And there's enough space in the big living room to cordon off a dining area. Very convenient for entertaining people, saves a lot of mileage. This fits easily a nice oak wood table that seats eight people. Perfect for dinner parties." Skip grinned. Castle frowned. From what he could see from the living area the kitchen was small. And they'd never fit a dining area AND an office corner into the room without completely ruining the layout.

Skip led Rick into the gourmet-kitchen, his words, not Rick's, "Do you like to cook, Mr Castle? You'll find no better appliances. And like I said before, they're really only three years old and in excellent condition."

Once he actually got a peek at the kitchen, Castle took back everything he'd thought before. It wasn't small, it was tiny. With his six feet he felt like Gulliver in Lilliput and he and Kate could forget cooking together the way they enjoyed it in New York. And worst of all more red. And in combination with the dark wood and steel appliances, the dark color shrank the tiny room an additional three sizes. Richard Castle was definitely not a fan of this particular condo.

Sensing Rick's increasing disquiet, Skip quickly suggested they had upstairs to the sleeping quarters. "Very conveniently the staircase is built in a way that allows some additional storage room and, best of all, a partial bathroom." He opened both doors for Castle to catch a look, before they ascended to the upper level.

The master bedroom was a vision in beige. The walls were painted in a rich creamy color with earthy shades that he just _knew_ Kate would love. The same 10 feet windows, that bathed the living area downstairs, flooded the smaller bedroom with direct sunlight. Knowing it was about 10 o'clock in the morning, it also meant that the sun would move in time before it reached its zenith and would be at the strongest. That would save them a nice little sum on electrical bills for air conditioning during the summer. And Kate loved light, so this would be a huge plus. The walk in closet was of reasonable space, it could easily fit his suits and Kate's dresses and work wardrobe. The rest could go into drawers; there was enough space to put up Kate's cupboard and antique chest.

0~0~0~0~0

They were lying in his bed, basking in their post-coital glow, talking about their future and the logistics of consolidating two households while moving to another city.

"I've been thinking," Kate started and traced lazy patterns across his chest with her fingers. Rick hummed content with his eyes closed. "What if we move of all of my stuff from my apartment to D.C?"

"Why? I thought we'd agreed we'd mix your stuff into mine here at the loft and buy new stuff for our first apartment together."

"Yeah, but…"

"What?" He cracked his eyes open and blinked at her.

"I don't know. My taste doesn't really go with your style at the loft." She shrugged her shoulders.

"I thought the whole point was to merge our lives together, how can we do that if we keep our stuff separate?"

"Seriously, Rick. I like the loft just the way it is. It's perfect, it's you." She pressed a quick kiss on his chest.

"You're wrong, it's no longer me, it's _us_ now. If we furnish our new apartment in D.C. with your old stuff, then New York will feel like my place and D.C. like yours. That's not what I want, is that what _you_ want?" Was she suddenly looking for an out again? He thought they were past this. He'd proposed and she'd accepted. They were going to spend the rest of their lives together.

"Can you honestly see my grungy couch in your two million designer living room?" Kate challenged him.

"Well, no, but we don't have to keep your couch."

"What about my bed, my dressers, my cupboards, my bookcases, my shelves… it's all mix and match and your loft is so carefully planned out, all my stuff will stick out like a sore thumb."

"We can hire a designer to find a common voice for both of us. They'll know what to keep and where to put it. We don't have to keep all of my stuff. I'd gladly chuck out some of mine to make space for yours if you want to avoid clutter."

"I don't know. Wouldn't it make more sense to just move all my stuff to D.C. instead of throwing it away or donating it? We start to furnish our new place with my stuff and then go shopping for everything else we need _together_."

"I get to pick?" He gave her a lop-sided grin.

"I have veto powers!" Beckett added quickly.

"Alright, then." Castle closed his eyes and snuggled deeper into his pillow. "We definitely have to bring your dresser with _my_ drawer." He teased her. He'd long claimed a lot more space in her bedroom and bathroom and even her den to accommodate some of his stuff since Valentine's Day.

"I think we can find you your own dresser." Kate smirked and kissed his chest.

"I don't know. I really like that chest. It has magical drawers." He smiled content, as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"Okay, I promise we'll definitely keep the dresser and my bed."

"Your bed? Beckett, you've only got a queen! Let's buy a nice California king for our crib in D.C. like we have here at the loft so that we can christen it together." He whined and then muttered under his breath, "One you didn't share with other men."

Kate raised her eyebrows at him, "Well, if you put it like that, Castle, we're getting rid of this bed first thing tomorrow. I'm sure your _California king_ has seen more action and women than mine."

Castle looked at her goofily and slightly aroused, "You had other women in your bed?"

"What? No!" She frowned at him and then realized her slip-up in the analogy, "I meant _men_ in my bed."

"Yes, but your bed is newer, it's only natural that it has seen less nocturnal activities in its very short life."

"Oh, I don't know. Considering everything we've done in there, I think it's gotten more use than my old one."

Rick looked at her seriously for a moment, "Do you want me to get rid of my bed? We can get a new one if it bothers you that I've slept in here with other women."

"No, it's okay. We both know we have a past, but that's just it. The past is past. And we're making new memories instead."

"The _best_ memories," Castle stressed, "all of my favorite memories in this room are with _you_."

"Look at you, going all corny romance novelist on me." Beckett teased him.

"It's true," Castle simply shrugged.

"Do you know what _my_ favorite memory about _my_ bed is?" Kate lifted the sheets and moved on top of Rick, straddling his lap.

"No, but please do tell, detective."

"You handcuffed to the head board, all tied up and lying spread-eagle on my mattress, while I have my wicked ways with you. It's just the right size for you." She leaned down and kissed him passionately. Rick's reaction was immediate. She could feel him harden and nudging her entrance.

"You're right. We _absolutely_ have to pack your bed and bring it to D.C. It's now non-negotiable."

"I thought so," Kate smiled and kissed him again, longer and harder. "You know what else is non-negotiable right now?"

"What?" He asked her breathless. If he were a puppy, he'd be wagging his tail.

"This!" She breathed against his lips, as she reached down to grab his cock and slowly slid onto him.

"You drive a very hard bargain, detective."

"Shut up and fuck me already, writer boy."

0~0~0~0~0

"As you can see, this condo features a unique layout on the second floor that allows for separate space, down here in the master bedroom." Skip's voice startled Castle out of his reverie and he followed the realtor as he walked down the few steps from the master bedroom to what appeared to be a long corridor that led to a small balcony through a set of French doors. Rick could see that the previous owners had decided to line the wall with floor to ceiling bookcases that left some scratch marks the new paint job could not successfully hide completely.

"Even though this is a long and narrow shaped room, it has enough space for you to put in a desk and turn it into a small study. The previous owners used it as a library and reading room." Skip offered yet another idea for Castle's office.

Castle nodded slowly and looked around the narrow space, wondering if he was experiencing early onset signs of claustrophobia. Skip led him through the French doors outside to the balcony, which was simply adorable. A small green oasis, it was really more than just a balcony, it was more of a terrace. Plants and shrubbery were strategically placed to shield the balcony from the neighbors and two lounge chairs and a small table with iron feet and marble top completed the view. He kind of regretted now that he'd already made a decision not to buy the condo, because he'd love to take Kate on this balcony under the starry night sky. Maybe Skip would let him borrow the keys and Castle could take Kate for a little private viewing later in the week.

"And if that long corridor space was not to your liking, you can always turn this second bedroom into an office." Skip pointed towards another set of French doors a little further down the wall. Castle followed the realtor back inside, down the corridor to the master bedroom and from the back into the hallway. Rick noticed they'd conveniently skipped the bathroom, which didn't bode well.

When Skip opened the door to the second bedroom, it only confirmed Castle's previous decision. It was way too small. It barely fit a queen-sized bed and was really more the size appropriate for a small child's twin-bed. This was undoubtedly a children's bedroom. It was probably not even half the size of Alexis' current bedroom at the loft.

"Actually, we'll need that second bedroom," Rick explained to Skip, "since my daughter will live with us occasionally. When I said two to five bedrooms, two was really the bare minimum. I was hoping you'd have some condos that have additional dens that we could turn into an office, so we wouldn't have to sacrifice that second bedroom. So the more I think about it, ideally we'd get something along the lines of three to four bedrooms."

Skip nodded slowly. "In that case, I think the second property I picked for this morning will be much more to your liking. Would you like to take a look at the bathrooms on this floor, or shall we call it a day here?"

"Out of curiosity, what's the asking price?"

"A little over $1 million, which is a real steal for this location and the excellent condition of the apartment."

"It's a bit on the small side though." Castle replied.

"Yes, well, I think it's ideal for a young professional couple."

"That it is indeed, but I'm afraid it's not really what my wife and I are looking for."

"Very well, then let me lock up this place and I'll meet you at the other property. You have the address?"

"Yes," Castle nodded.


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: Still don't own shit._

* * *

"What are you doing?" Kate sat down on the couch next to him, lifting his arm and putting it around her shoulder, so she could rest her head against his chest. Castle had his feet propped up on the coffee table and balanced his laptop carefully on his thighs.

"There's this website with property listings in D.C. that I've been checking out all afternoon." Rick looked up from the screen and smiled at his fiancée. "How was your day?"

"Too much paperwork. Gates won't let me take lead on any new cases anymore, in case we can't close them before I leave."

"And the boys?"

"Still giving me the cold shoulder." Kate sighed.

"They'll come around, you'll see. Ryan will be a blubbering baby on your last day, clinging to your legs and begging you to stay."

"Ryan's not the problem. Espo is. I swear he's plotting how to kill me in my sleep for betraying him like that. And you know he'd get away with it thanks to his sniper training." Kate shuddered.

Castle laughed out loud. "Come here," he pulled her tighter into his one-armed hug and kissed her head through her hair. "How about a little distraction? I've flagged a few listings I thought you might like."

"Okay," Kate smiled and leaned in to get a better view at the screen.

"We haven't really talked about what kind of place we want, so I've flagged both condos and townhouses with three to four bedrooms that are for sale. Have you at all thought about preferences regarding neighborhoods?"

"I was thinking Georgetown might be nice, if we can afford it."

"You're marrying a best-selling mystery writer, Kate, trust me we can afford it."

"You mean _you_ can afford it." She corrected him.

"Are we really going to have this argument again? Kate, we're getting married. What's mine is yours, so yes, _we_ can afford it."

"I don't want you to pay for everything, Castle." She insisted, "I don't want to feel like a kept woman."

"What do you want me to do, Kate? Not use my money at all?"

"Don't be ridiculous, of course not!"

"Then what do you want, Beckett, tell me. Cause this," he waved around the loft, "is leading us nowhere!" Rick shouted exasperated.

She stared at him in silence and Rick sighed.

"My money's not going anywhere, Kate, so the sooner you get used to your new wealth, the better it will be for all of us. Can you please try?" He tried again more calm and quiet this time.

"I don't want to lose my independence," she finally confessed quietly.

"What?! Why would…?" He looked at her astonished. "How's buying a townhouse in Georgetown equal to you becoming dependent on me?"

"I know you, Castle. It starts with the house and the vacations, then you buy me a car and new dresses to accompany you to public appearances and before I know it everything I own in my life actually belongs to you!"

"So, really, you don't want to share what's yours with me?" He gave her a lop-sided grin.

"Argh!" Kate grunted and stood up.

"Beckett, what is this really about? I don't get what the big deal is."

"It shouldn't be this hard." Kate began, pacing the floor.

"What shouldn't be so hard?" He couldn't follow her.

"This! Life… love… us…. Everything."

"I don't understand," Castle's voice cracked, "what are you trying to say?"

"We're so different, Rick. What if I stick out in your life like a sore thumb just like my stuff among yours does? What if we're still only kidding ourselves? Where does that leave me, if I let you pay for everything in my life? I'd be nothing but a gold digger, living in _your_ apartment, driving _your_ cars, wearing _your_ clothes."

"Oh my god!" He exclaimed appalled, "You don't believe in us! You don't think we're going to make it!" He accused her.

"What?!" She frowned aghast. "No!"

He looked at her heartbroken. "I don't understand, Kate. I…" He trailed off, fighting back the tears welling up in his eyes, "I thought we were happy. Finally on track…" He swallowed the thick lump that had formed in his throat.

"Are we, Rick?" She stared at him upset.

"Obviously not if you have to ask!" He shook his head with disappointment.

"You were so serious, Rick," she tried to explain, "on that swing set. I thought for sure you were going to break up with me."

"What?!" He straightened up, "Kate that's the _last_ thing I want."

"Then why does everything feel so rushed and forced between us lately?" She looked at him so helpless, it tugged at his heartstrings.

"What do you mean?" He put the laptop on the coffee table and rose from the couch.

"I feel like I'm losing control over my life. I was so certain you were going to end things and then you sprang that surprise on me. In the fraction of a second, you turned my whole life upside down and now I'm suddenly engaged and starting a new job and moving to another city…"

He didn't let her finish, rushed over and silenced her with a kiss. "Relax, Kate." He palmed her cheeks and gazed into her eyes. "It's okay to be a little scared right now. There have been a lot of changes in your life recently. But there's no need to freak out. Whatever happens, I'm _not_ going anywhere. I'm in this for the long haul. I want you. I want _this_ with you." He reached for her hand to hold up her engagement ring. "I want forever with you."

"Are you sure? What if I forced you into something you weren't ready for because of my stupid behavior? I don't want to trap you like Meredith did."

"First of all, you're _nothing_ like her. Second, Meredith didn't trap me. Believe me, she felt more trapped by her pregnancy than I have raising Alexis by myself for the past nineteen years. Besides, I knew what kind of persons she was and I married her anyway. So that one is really all on me. No one forced me back then, it was my decision."

"Would you have married Meredith if you hadn't knocked her up?" She raised her eyebrows at him, demanding an honest answer.

"No, probably not." He admitted.

She gave him a look that clearly said, 'I told you so.' "Then you caved to societal pressure and expectations, which might as well have forced your hand. What guarantee do I have that you're not making the same mistake twice? What if you're going to resent me, too. I don't want to become your _third_ ex-wife."

"Then why did you even accept my proposal?" He snarled angrily.

"Because I love you, dammit, and I don't want to lose you!" She yelled. Kate knew that if she had told him no that day at the swing set, their relationship would have never recovered.

They stared at each other shocked and in silence for a few minutes. How had they ended up fighting like this? Half an hour ago they'd been cuddling on the couch.

"Do you…" Castle licked his lips and cleared his throat, "do you think we're making a mistake?"

"I don't know." Kate sighed and sat back down. She rubbed her palms over her face and then propped her elbows on her knees, hiding her face in her hands.

He walked over and fell onto the couch next to her with a big huff. His voice broke, "Do you want to call the wedding off?"

Kate stared at the floor and shook her head. Castle breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then what do you want us to do? What do you want, Beckett?" Rick asked, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu. The last time he'd asked her that question, she'd launched herself into his arms, clinging to him like a shipwrecked to a life buoy.

"A time machine." She lifted her head from her hands and glanced at him with a weak smile. "So we can go back before this mess."

They sat in silence staring straight ahead for while, when Kate broke the silence.

"I love you, Rick, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, but I'll never know whether you just proposed to me only because you were afraid I'd chose D.C over you."

"I guess my word doesn't count?" He glanced at her sideways. So that's what it was. She was upset over the way he proposed. "That's really sad, Beckett, because it means you can't trust me."

"I trust you, it's just…" She started crying again. "This is what I meant. It's all so complicated, I've made such a mess of things. You should've been beaming all over your face, when you reached for your ring, bubbling over with excitement. Instead you wore that serious look. It made me feel like I was pointing a gun to your head, when you asked."

"That's because I was really scared you'd say no." He confessed. "And I was trying really hard to show you that I can be more than an overgrown man-child. I can act like an adult from time to time, I can be the man you deserve, Beckett… a good husband, someone you can always rely on. I know I don't have the best track record with Gina and Meredith, but I don't take marriage easily. It may have been all fun and games with Gina and Meredith, Meredith especially, but with you... I want to work on our relationship, I really want to make our marriage to work. I want you to be the last person I pledge my life to. I _want_ to be your one an done."

She felt tears prick at her eyes through the smile she gave. "You are, Rick. You've always been and you'll always be." Kate swallowed hard and blinked back the tears that were threatening to spill over. _How could he even doubt that?_ "_I'm_ the one who doesn't deserve _you_. I don't even know why you love me. I'm such a hot mess."

"You're beautiful and extraordinary and incredibly adorable when you're a mess." He gave her a boyish smile. "I love you because you're compassionate and strong, plus, you laugh at my jokes." He nudged her shoulder softly. "There are a _million_ reasons why I love you but there's only _one_ reason why I asked you to marry me, Kate."

He took her left hand and rubbed his thumb over her engagement ring. "I can't ever live another day without you in my life, not after this amazing year we've had together. I just can't let you go, Kate. And if you need to hear that from me every day until I die to believe how much I love you, then I'll tell you day after day after day."

"I can't live without you anymore, either." She whispered and gazed into his eyes. "I tried to picture myself in D.C. without you and I just couldn't see it. I was so afraid I'd have to choose one over the other, and now I'm so glad I can have both." She leaned in and brushed her lips softly over his. "I don't want to ever be without you again. I mean it, Rick, I don't know what I'd do without you in my life." There was an edge of desperation in her voice, he seldom heard.

"I love you, Kate." He breathed and kissed her hard.

"I love you so much." She mumbled against his lips.

"So where do we go from here?" Rick pulled back and looked at her with expectant eyes.

"I _do_ want to marry you, I'm just scared we're both rushing into a marriage to distract us from our real problems."

"I'm not stupid, Kate. I didn't pop the question to you, thinking a proposal would be a miracle cure that fixed all our problems."

"We _have_ to get better communicating with each other openly before we get married." Kate emphasized. "I love the silent conversations we can have by merely looking and touching each other, but if we're going to make this work, we both have to be more assertive regarding our needs and expectations."

"Fine, I'll start. I don't want to fight you every time I buy a gift for you, Beckett. What good is my money, if I can't spend it on the people I love?"

"Can we buy something together?" She countered. "We can look at smaller apartments and it doesn't have to be Georgetown. I'll pay part of the down payment and we'll get a mortgage _together_. "

"Of course we can look. What did you have in mind in terms of size?" He asked her.

"Two bedrooms, so we have a place for Alexis when she comes to visit. A nice, spacious bat cave for you to write. Maybe an extra guestroom for when your mom or my dad stays over, or if one of the gang decides to come and visit us when I'm no longer persona non grata." Kate chuckled.

"That's not so much different from what I had in mind. I was thinking three bedrooms minimum, especially if you want Alexis to have her own room. But I'm leaning towards four bedrooms, so we can have a dedicated guest room and convert the other one into my office."

"I like modern appliances and amenities like in your loft, but I also love older, historic buildings – that's why I thought about the townhouses in Georgetown in the first place."

"Kate, I love you and I would really like to buy you your dream house where we can grow old together. Promise me you'll think about it ok? I already talked to my lawyers and they said I can easily afford a 5-6 mill purchase with my current portfolio. Even if I pay, we'll put both our names on the deed as owners. Legally, it will be ours." Rick tried again.

"Give me some time to think about it. Get used to the idea, ok?"

"Sure. We still have a few weeks left. You'll see in a few years we'll be too tired from chasing after our kids to care about who paid the utilities bill." He smiled.

The mood suddenly shifted and a pregnant silence hung in the air.

"That's another one of those things we should talk about before the wedding." Kate said.

"Probably." Rick nodded.

"But not tonight." Kate replied, unwilling to walk through that minefield after the fight they just had.

"What else should we talk about before the wedding?"

"Do you want a pre-nup?" Kate asked him all business like.

"_Definitely_ not talking about that tonight." Rick's eyes widened in horror and Kate chuckled.

"When do you want to get married?"

"Remember if it had been up to me we would've eloped right from the swing set."

Kate bit her lip nervously. "I think we should wait. I mean not like indefinitely, but maybe we should set a date for next summer or spring. That will give us more time to talk about the important things, fight and make up. Take little steps, you know?" She grinned at him.

Rick breathed a sigh of relief. She was teasing him already about their earlier blow up. "Why, detective, I think we just had our first fight as an engaged couple. Do you realize what this means?"

"Make up sex?" She smirked.

"Very hot and very wild make up sex." He nodded at her with a big grin.

0~0~0~0~0

Rick stared at the large glass front of the second complex he was going to view today, still lost in thought. It was a very modern building with an unusual design. It clearly lacked the historic charm Kate was so fond of.

"Quite impressive, huh?" Skip stepped up next to Castle and followed his gaze. "This complex was built in 2010 by an architect who puts an emphasis on eco-friendly urban living. The whole building is designed to take advantage of natural light and sustainable energy. The black panels you see at the corners are more than decorative accents, they're solar panels."

Rick nodded slowly. Now that again deserved some brownie points.

"Shall we take a look?" Skip turned to Rick who nodded.

While they rode up in the elevator, Skip gave Castle the run down on the condo. "This unit has five bedrooms, three bathrooms, a large kitchen/dining area, a living room, and an office. It comes fully furnished, if you want. Unlike the previous property, which encompassed two stories, this unit stretches out all across the top floor."

"Like a penthouse." Castle hummed.

"Kind of. It's very bright and has lots of light, which I can already tell from our previous viewing is very important to you and your fiancée."

"Yes, we both like dark and rustic furniture, so the more natural light the better." Rick explained.

"You'll probably want to chuck out most of the present furniture, it's all very white and sterile." Skip grinned. "Very modern, very minimalist."

"I'll be honest with you, Skip. Today is only for getting a feeling for what's out there."

"I know, Rick. At this price range, I rarely ever close a deal after the first showing. That's why I picked the two bedroom and the five bedroom units to show you both ends of the range you gave me. And those are only the condominiums. Did you get my e-mail with the open houses from our company in Georgetown tomorrow?"

Castle nodded, "Yes, thank you. Kate really fancies getting a quaint little townhouse there."

"Good." He pulled out his smart phone and pulled up his calendar. "I know you said your fiancée probably has to work and her schedule can be messy but I've got open slots at 10.45 am for the Olive Street property and then again at 5.15 in the afternoon, when I'm at the property on Prospect Street."

"It'll probably just be me again," Rick explained, "but I'll definitely come to the viewings."

"Excellent," Skip exclaimed and the elevator dinged. The doors opened and Skip exited, showing Rick the way. "Right, this way. Now it goes without saying that all our listings are in excellent and safe neighborhoods. I forgot to mention that the unit we viewed earlier came with two parking spots, this one unfortunately only comes with one, but there's a long term parking garage just around the corner."

Skip unlocked the door and pushed it wide open.

"Wow," Castle couldn't help but show his surprise. He almost whistled. This condo played in a completely different league than the previous one. "The entrance area and hallways are Italian marble. Very durable." Skip stomped his foot as if to prove it. "Down to your right is where the sleeping quarters are, the office is to your left. But let's just go straight ahead," Skip led them through a small archway and Castle had to watch his head, "into the living-slash-reception room."

They were greeted with a white leather furniture set that provided a stark contrast to the mahogany coffee table around which the couch, loveseat and armchair were arranged. Rick looked down at his feet and recognized an authentic Persian carpet.

Skip gave Castle a few moments to take it all in, before they ventured further into the room. Now it became obvious that this condo subscribed to an open layout as well. Separated by a pair of open shelves, one could still see into the actual living room.

A large home entertainment center set up with a projector, 64-inch plasma screen and Dolby surround system formed the centerpiece of the next section. A fluffy, white flokati rug provided a nice accent to the dark hardwood floor and black leather furniture, but seriously killed the bachelor-pad-vibe. It was all very sleek and modern. Castle wondered if the bright white reception area was the feminine counterpart to this man-cave. Feng-shui yin-yang? But where the hell did that ugly flokati thing come from? Rick wondered if that may have been the trade off for ESPN premium subscription with the girlfriend. He honestly thought the fashion police prohibited those ugly fluffy things as soon as the 70s ended.

As if he could read Rick's mind, Skip piped up, "How many Fraggles do you think had to die for this rug? I've always wondered ever since we listed the property a few months ago."

Rick guffawed and just like that the ice that had been slowly melting between the two men was broken. "I don't know but I can have my girlfriend send it to the FBI lab and find out."

"I don't know, do the feds have jurisdiction over Fraggle Rock?" Skip grinned.

"I bet the Doozers did it, they got tired of Fraggles eating the scaffolding they just put up." Rick volleyed back. Oh how he wished Kate were there, so he could regal her with murderous tales of homicidal muppets.

"Dance your cares away…" Skip started to hum quietly and Castle automatically clapped. They grinned at each other like Cheshire cats and sang together, "Worry for another day."

Humming the Fraggles theme, they moseyed over to a door in the wall that led to the kitchen/dining area. A large oak wood dining table dominated the ambience. Along the dark purple walls – Kate would really dig that – sideboards filled with silverware, serving dishes and dinnerware lined up. On the opposite end of the room loomed the stainless kitchen. The state-of-the-art equipment beckoned Castle closer and he inspected everything from the double-door fridge over the oven/stovetop combination to the dishwasher. A large kitchen island, which could double as a breakfast bar, housed an impressive array of stainless steel pots, pans and other dishes. Two wooden cabinets with partial glass fronts gave the kitchen a more friendly design than the sterile feeling of the steel appliances. Rick could easily see himself and Kate cooking dinner and throwing a little party for their new D.C. friends in this kitchen. Maybe they'd invite her new colleagues over, so he could meet Squirrel and Fangirl and Kate's new partner and boss.

"This door leads to a storage room that contains the washer and dryer unit." Skip pointed to a door in the corner of the kitchen. "It conveniently connects the sleeping area with the living area through the kitchen."

Rick had to immediately think of something Kate told him early on in their relationship when they'd started preparing dinner together. The kitchen is the soul of every home. Another pearl of Beckett-wisdom passed down from Johanna Beckett to the next generation. Castle couldn't agree more.

"This corridor leads down to the entrance area." Skip explained but already turned to the left. "This is the master bedroom, which comes with an en-suite bathroom."

Rick stepped inside the room and for the first time felt disappointed by the condo. The shape was awkward because of the building's design, the large bed dominated the view and was placed awkwardly near the window. Did the other rooms not have the same problem or camouflage it better?

"It's small," Rick observed and was shocked by the tiny walk in closet. There wasn't much to take in, so he peeked into the bathroom. It only had a shower stall and that was a deal breaker for Kate. He knew how much she loved her long baths at the end of a stressful day at work.

Skip showed Castle the rest of the bedrooms, which were actually more decently sized than the master bedroom. The second bathroom was so small Rick was sure he could brush his teeth, use the toilet and shower at the same time.

Back in the entrance hall, Skip revealed another washroom for guests next to what Castle assumed must be the study room the realtor had promised earlier.

"When you mentioned you were a writer, I had to immediately think of the office in this listing." Skip opened the door to the room with a flourish. It was a sizable room lined with white, floor-to-ceiling bookcases on three walls. The large antique desk was bathed in direct sunlight from the big window. Peering outside, Rick could see the Rosslyn skyline.

"Now that's what I call a room for inspiration," Skip smiled proudly. Rick felt slightly sorry for the realtor because the room didn't really do anything for him. So he smiled politely and nodded.

Once the tour was over, Skip excused himself. He had to dash and meet another client. Castle thanked the younger man for his patience and expertise and made his way back to the hotel. He had purposely not scheduled any viewings for the early afternoon, since it was Saturday and he usually skyped with Alexis after lunch.

0~0~0~0~0

It was almost two o'clock and Rick Castle was sitting on the couch in his hotel suite, waiting impatiently for the small green icon next to Alexis's name to appear. On the stroke of the full hour, he heard the unmistakable Skype ringtone.

"Alexis!" Rick exclaimed excitedly.

"Dad! How are you?" A window with his beautiful little girl came on.

"Good, but how are you?"

"I'm great, Dad. This week has just been amazing. We did this trip across the country, following the early footsteps of the conquistadores. We saw these tiny villages and old ruins. You wouldn't believe how beautiful everything here is." Alexis gushed and Rick smiled.

"I'm glad you're having a good time."

"Don't worry, I'll be home soon dad, it's only two more weeks." A tinge of sadness crept into her voice.

"I know." Rick sighed. "I can't believe you won't be here for my book launch party. This is the first one you'll miss in ten years!"

"Ahh, but you have Beckett to keep you company now. She'll be much more effective at repelling blood sucking agents and publishers and ex-wives than I ever was. All she has to do is show her ring and point at her gun." Alexis grinned.

Rick sighed, "I don't know if Kate will come."

"Did you fight again?" Alexis' brows furrowed with worry.

"No, pumpkin. She's just got this really big case and she's been so busy I haven't even seen her all weekend. She even forgot to pick me up Friday at the airport."

"You're in D.C? I _thought_ the room looked different."

"Yeah, I'm in our hotel suite at the W. But I'll be back in New York for the launch party next weekend and I'll definitely be there to pick you up at the airport when you land in two weeks."

"Will you say hi from me anyways?"

"Of course, pumpkin! So what are your plans for today?"

"Shopping, since we already hiked all the way into the city for the internet access, we might as well spend the afternoon here."

"Excellent choice, support your local economy." Castle chuckled.

"If you don't hear from me this week, don't worry, dad. We're headed to the national park, Corcovado I think, to see some wildlife."

"Can you bring me a capuchin monkey home as a souvenir?"

"No."

"Because it's illegal?"

Alexis laughed out loud, "That too, but mostly because they fling shit at you, like literally, and Kate would kill me and she's got friends who can help her hide my body."

"Right, I always forget about that part."

"Dad, my friends are getting restless. I need to go soon."

"Ok." Rick nodded reluctantly. "I miss you."

"Miss you, too, daddy."

"Be careful. And watch out for those shit-flinging monkeys. Do you get enough to eat?"

"Yes, dad." Alexis rolled her eyes.

"I'm testing your patience again, am I?"

"Yes, but you're forgiven, since you're over a thousand miles away and don't know what things are like here."

"Thank you, oh gracious daughter of mine."

"I really need to go now, dad."

"Okay, love you."

"Love you, too, dad, bye!"

The window with Alexis' face closed and Rick's heart sank a little lower in his chest. He closed his laptop and placed it onto the coffee table. Castle sank back into the couch and closed his eyes. She was fine. She looked healthy. Her voice was filled with wonder and excitement while she recaptured her recent activities for him. There was absolutely no need for him to worry. And she would be home soon. Two more weeks and then he'd get to hold her. She didn't know it yet, but he'd already decided he'd never let go of her again. He'd already ordered industrial-strength super glue to help him with that mission. Kate would disapprove, but she'd learn to live with a 19-year-old college girl permanently attached to her husband's hip.

A strange noise at the door caught his attention. He hadn't ordered anything from room service. Maybe one of the maids forgot something earlier and was bringing extra towels or fresh bathrobes. Castle rose from the couch and walked over to the door.

He recognized the unmistakable sounds of someone sliding their keycard repeatedly through the lock without the proper result. The person on the other side was getting increasingly frustrated, judging by the muttered curses and thinly veiled threats of bodily harm against that "stupid, god-damn lock."

Castle chuckled and flung the door open form the inside. He looked at the crouched figure in front of him, picking up the keycard they must have just dropped.

"Beckett!" He grinned, instantly recognizing his fiancée on the floor, "I know you feel bad about standing me up last night but there's no need to fall on your knees in front of me. It's already water under the bridge."

"Castle!" She looked up surprised and quickly rose to her feet.


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: This chapter is rated M for a very, very good reason. It's pure and unadulterated smut! It doesn't even pretend it has a plot. So, you have been warned. If this is not your thing, skip it, you're not missing anything of the actual story, just a little character development._

_The has been some confusion with regards to the last chapter's setting. Chapter 8 & 9 started out as one idea that grew and grew until the chapter was so long I had to break it down into two. So yes, the beginning of chapter 9 is another flashback to their time in NYC before Kate began her training. And since she's pretty much ditched Castle the whole week, Beckett almost expected him to fly back since she wouldn't have any time for him. _

_On a personal note, I don't have regular internet access right now, so updates have become a bit more sporadic, depending on when I find time (and a free spot to sit down) at Starbucks for an hour._

* * *

_Warning: M rated_

"You stayed," she breathed and looked at him astonished. They hadn't talked since last night and Beckett had been afraid that Rick flew back to New York first thing in the morning. She wouldn't begrudge him that, since she obviously didn't have time for him this weekend, and she didn't expect him to sit around and twiddle his thumbs waiting for her.

Castle automatically opened his arms to welcome her with a hug. Any lingering traces of resentment toward her and her new job evaporated, when her face lit up with a thousand-mega-watt smile the moment she laid her eyes on him.

Kate flew into his arms and brushed her lips over his in a ghost of a kiss. When he didn't immediately react, she pressed her lips on his mouth again and let them linger. She pulled back slowly and touched his cheeks with her hands, as if to reassure herself that it was really him and not some apparition her sleep-deprived but adrenaline-addled brain had conjured up.

She kissed him again and this time Rick responded. He ran his tongue across her lower lip, gently prying her mouth open. Her tongue snaked out to meet his and the minute they touched, a jolt of electricity ran down his body.

He could feel her shiver in his arms and knew she must have felt it, too. Instinctually he brought his arms up around her to fold her deeper into his embrace, as they kissed slowly. His tongue toyed with hers, ran over her teeth and dipped into the cavern of her mouth. A quiet moan escaped her throat and was muffled by their kiss. Castle's hands wandered down to her hips and pulled her closer.

She was safe. For the first time all day, she felt truly safe and let her shoulders relax. The tension she'd been feeling ever since she'd jumped out that window slowly left her body, which went a little slack in his arms. He noticed and immediately pulled her deeper into his embrace, as if he was trying to make her disappear into his tall frame. Oh god, how she'd missed this. Him. Her tall and ruggedly handsome man.

It was a cliché, but it was also the truth. He made her feel safe. Plain and simple. He gave her security and stability every day, even though she sometimes did her best to upset their equilibrium. However, as long as he waited for her with open arms at the end of the day, she knew she'd be all right in the end, no matter what events had transpired and conspired against her during the day. She wasn't ready to talk about it yet. She knew he'd only worry and get upset for her, but the truth was it was nobody's fault she didn't have the proper back up this morning. It was a new team and these things took time. There were always a few chinks in any armor that had to be ironed out. That didn't mean the bullet flying at her while she was in mid-air hadn't rattled her cage a little bit. She needed to feel alive in Rick's arms.

Beckett was a tall person herself, so she appreciated Castle's tall frame towering a little bit over her today. In his tight hug, it felt a little bit as if he was trying to wrap himself around her, absorb her body into his. In past years it would have made her feel claustrophobic but, these days with him, she sought it out. She had no complaints; she'd gladly disappear into him after the day's events, if it were physically possible. So she did the next best thing and hid in his embrace. She burrowed her face into the fabric of his dress shirt and inhaled his unique scent. Kate closed her eyes and let his strong arms hold her and calm her. She relished in his broad shoulders that cushioned her head. She loved the well-toned muscles of his arms that were wrapped around her protectively. Castle would never let anything happen to her. And though she wished she never would have had to find out for sure, she knew he'd give his life for her in an instant. The proof was on her chest. Sometimes it scared her a little bit that she had that kind of power over him. Wished she could somehow stop it. But at the same time she knew it was useless to fight it because she felt just the same about him. Granted, she'd made a living out of protecting other people, but in the end when it came down to it, she knew she'd take that bullet for him because a world without him was simply not a world she'd want to live in anymore.

"Are you… shorter?" she heard his amused voice, slightly confused, when he tucked her head underneath his chin. A mixture of a groan and a chuckle bubbled up her throat.

"No heels," Kate mumbled into his chest and Rick gasped in shock. Before he could ask what happened, she explained Rachel's new rule.

"Don't worry, I'll take you out to dinner tonight and let you wear extra-high heels that'll make you actually taller than I am."

Beckett shook her head, well, effectively she rubbed her face against the fabric of the shirt, and hummed, "I actually quite like it like this."

"Yeah?" He pulled back far enough to get a look at her.

"Yeah, you can be my knight in shining armor for one night."

"Do I get to ride on a noble steed?" He smiled down at her.

"I don't know, Castle, you're the one who stole that police horse."

"Borrowed," he immediately protested, "how many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Tomato, tom-ah-to." Kate grinned.

"What can I say? My subconscious was trying to meet you already years ago, when you were still a lowly uniform. It's a real pity you weren't there to arrest me. Would have spared me a second divorce and saved me _a lot_ of money."

Beckett snorted, "Right, and you wouldn't want to fight your subconscious anymore than you would want to ignore the signs of the universe."

A small grin formed on Rick's lips. She remembered. It was one of the things he loved so much about their relationship. The way they had connected even before they'd gotten together, it may not have been a traditional friendship – and courtship if he was truly honest – but there were so many little moments they'd cherished and weaved into the fabric of their lives, so they could remember them forever. He'd never had that connection with another woman. Kate – and he for that matter – could remember the tiniest moments between them and recall them at the most convenient occasions… or inopportune moments when she reminded him of something stupid that he'd done years ago and he'd thought, hoped, prayed she'd long forgotten.

"Alright then, let me give you another sign," Kate smiled at him and cupped his cheeks between her hands to pull down his head. She gave him a long and passionate kiss.

"Oh, I know _that_ sign by heart," Castle beamed at her, as his hands searched for hers. He linked their fingers together as he gently tugged at her arms to make her follow him. Walking backwards, he led Kate into the bedroom, never taking his eyes off of his beautiful fiancée. Halfway through the door, Kate disentangled their hands, so she could shrug off her blazer. Rick gave her a salacious grin and Beckett shook her head in mirth. She quickly popped the top buttons of her blouse and pulled it over her head. When she looked up, Rick had replaced his grin with a pout.

"I wanted to do that," he scowled.

"I'm sorry," Kate replied and closed the distance between them with a few steps. "Would you like to help me with my pants?"

"Not the same," Rick mumbled but reached out to grab her by the waistband anyway. He snuck his fingers into the space between the fabric of her pants and her skin and let them trail around her waist. Kate took in a breath and shivered involuntarily, making Rick smile.

"I love how you still react to my touch after all that time." He whispered and leaned in to kiss her.

"I love how you still make me feel when you touch me." She replied and kissed him back. They both reached for his shirt and started to unbutton it. Kate took care of the top half and Rick met her from the bottom up. They were still making out with each other, tongues dueling each other, teeth occasionally clashing when their hunger for each other made them a little bit too frantic.

She grasped the loose ends of his shirt and pulled him closer, craving the skin-to-skin contact. Her bra-clad breasts pressed tightly against his chest, and Kate let her lips wander across his naked shoulders. Rick hummed appreciatively and set to work on her pants. He quickly opened her belt and top button so he could sneak his hand down her slacks. Meeting resistance, he let out a groan, when he realized he missed another hidden button inside the seam that still fastened her pants.

"Not a fan of your new wardrobe, Beckett."

He could feel Kate smile into his skin at his frustration. Never one to be deterred easily, he quickly found and popped the inside button open and lowered the zip of her pants as well. Now he had much more room to maneuver his hand. Rick brought his left arm around her back, while he let his right hand slip down into her panties.

"Jesus, Kate, how'd you get so wet in such a short time?" He moaned into her ear, before he nibbled on her ear lobe. He wanted to pull off her pants, throw her onto the mattress and dive headfirst between her legs. Instead two of his fingers slipped through her folds and found their target.

Kate let out an audible gasp at the contact and accidentally bit his shoulder. Castle groaned, a mixture of pain and arousal, and began to rub her clit. Never mind how'd she get so wet so quickly, how'd she survive so long without this for a whole week? As wonderful as the sensation of Castle fingering her was, she wanted more. She _needed_ him inside her.

Beckett pulled back and gave him a coy smile. They both instantly missed their connection, but Kate shimmied down her pants quickly, while Castle got rid of his. She stepped backwards and climbed on top of the mattress, with Rick hot on her heels. They were both now in their underwear. She lay down, inviting him along. He knelt down next to her body but hovered with his torso over hers. His eyes raked over her body, drinking in her flush skin, her swollen lips from making out with him, her dark eyes lusting for him and her hard nipples trying to poke through the thin fabric of her bra.

A flash of arousal lit up his eyes and made his cock throb in his boxers. How did he ever get so lucky to call this extraordinary woman his own? Rick kissed her hungrily and pressed his groin against her hipbone so she could feel his erection. Feel, what she did to him all the time. She kissed him back eagerly; their tongues intertwined but, for once, she was not fighting him for dominance. Kate's hand trailed down the side of his body, making him shiver, until she reached the waistband of his boxers. Her fingers wandered over the thin material to his front, where his erection already formed a prominent tent.

She cupped his hard cock through his silk boxers and Rick's hips gave an involuntary thrust. Kate smiled and leaned into his kiss, her tongue becoming a bit more demanding. She needed more, she wanted him to take her and make love to her already. But Rick was taking his sweet time enjoying their sexual reunion.

He broke their lip lock and trailed soft kisses down her chin and throat until he buried his head in the valley of her breasts. He'd rolled on top of her, propping himself up on his left arm, while he stroked her body with the other one. He turned his hand and let his knuckles brush softly over the naked skin of her belly. Kate gasped and her body rose from the mattress on its own accord. She could feel his hard cock nestled and throbbing between her legs, separated only by the thin material of her cotton panties and his silk boxers. It was driving her crazy. She wanted him so badly, she'd missed him so much.

Rick lifted his head to gaze at the soft mounds of Kate's breasts partially covered by the black lace. He raised an eyebrow and flicked her an amused glance. "Been expecting me?" He teased her smugly, as he unfastened the clasp at the front and let her breasts spill over the thin fabric.

"Shut up, I haven't changed since yesterday." Kate countered and immediately regretted it.

"It's okay, I'm not mad at you. How can I be mad at you when you lie bare like this in front of me." He whispered and lowered his head to capture her left nipple in his mouth. Kate let out a long moan and squirmed underneath him. Fuck this man and his talented tongue. Her hand flew to the back of his head where it toyed with his hair. Rick hummed appreciatively around her nipple, which created a new sensation. "Apology accepted," he mumbled around the engorged, red bit of flesh.

"It's not just that. I must smell like the Yankee's locker room. I haven't showered in a while and I chased a suspect earlier today." She protested half-heartedly. Rick let go of her nipple and pulled himself up for a passionate kiss.

"You smell sexy and a little musky, but mostly you just taste delicious." He mumbled at the same time as he nibbled on her lower lip. "We can shower later _together_." He pulled back to catch her eyes and wiggled his eyebrows. Kate chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"Now where was I?" He pressed soft little kisses across her chest, spending a little extra time over her scar. His tongue laved the broken skin of her bullet wound, then trailed down to her right nipple. His mouth enclosed around the tiny mount of flesh and Rick began to suck.

Kate threw her head back into the pillow with a groan and arched her body into his. She could feel the heat pooling in her pussy, which throbbed in rhythm with Rick's tender caresses. Damn this man, he had her exactly where he wanted her: squirming and on the brink of an orgasm. It was time.

"Rick," she whispered but got no reaction. So she called his name again a little bit louder this time. Her hands were back at his head and gave a soft tug. Rick acquiesced and stopped his gentle ministrations to look up into her face. He was met with a smoldering gaze that told him everything he needed to know. Kate's mouth latched onto his lips in a hungry kiss that sent a tingly sensation straight down to his cock. Her tongue brushed over his again and again, sucking and soothing. His heart pumped inside his chest like crazy, he could feel the pounding in his head. Her kiss seemed to slow down everything around him and amplify his senses. She tasted so good, so sweet like… blueberries and a hint of coffee. For a split second he wondered what she'd eaten all day, before his focus turned back on the woman approaching her climax beneath him.

Castle broke away from the kiss and straightened up. He sat on his heels between her legs, down by her thighs. His hands wandered all over her body, taking her bra with him. She was now naked except for her white cotton panties. Rick quickly hooked a finger on either of her hips and pulled them down. They were soaked and ruined from her arousal. The water gathered in his mouth in anticipation of her sweet taste.

She lifted her legs to help him remove the last item of her clothing. Rick grabbed her right leg and slid her panties over it all the way down to her foot. However, once the leg was free, he didn't repeat the same on the other one, but instead stroked her calf with his palm. He bent his head down and kissed her on the inside of her leg. He placed another kiss a little bit higher, just below her knee. He let his tongue snake out and licked the soft skin behind her kneecap.

Kate gasped and fisted the sheets in response. He was going to kill her tonight. The maid would find her body tomorrow morning reduced to one big puddle. He was trailing soft kisses up the inside of her thigh now and she had a pretty good idea of what his intended target was.

"Castle," she exhaled breathlessly. He looked up at her with a question in his eyes. He looked like a sex god. A thin sheet of sweat was glistening on his well-toned chest. The color of his eyes had changed to the darkest blue, signaling the storm brewing inside of him. His hair was tousled from where she'd run her hands through it repeatedly and her long leg rested on his shoulder. He simply took her breath away. He was hers. Hers to take and keep forever. When she didn't immediately reply, he raised his eyebrows, waiting for further instruction from her.

"I want you now," was all she breathed as she sunk back into the pillows. He lowered her leg and spread them a little further apart to make room for himself. He licked his lips as he brought his head down to her pussy.

Kate sucked in air and drew her whole body in an arch, when his tongue made contact with her lips. Her hands clutched the bunch of sheets tighter. Moans spilled out of her throat uncontrollably. His tongue had already parted her lips and his mouth enclosed around her clit, sucking the little nub like there was no tomorrow.

"No, Rick!" Kat gasped out of breath and her hands flew down to his neck. They cupped the back of his head and she pulled him up towards her with the last of her motoric coherence.

"It's okay, Kate, I don't mind." He whispered but she kissed him desperately.

"No, inside me, now." She panted and pulled at his boxers impatiently, while he hovered above her. His cock was already straining to get out; she could see its head peeking out at the waistband. She pushed his boxers over his hips and down his butt, until his cock sprang free.

"I can't. I won't last that long." He gave her a bashful smile.

"Trust me, Castle, I'll be quicker." She kissed him again. Kate reached for his cock and gave it a couple of firm strokes, before she guided him to her entrance.

"Fuuuuck! Kaaaaate!" Castle groaned into their kiss, when he slid all the way into her wet and tight pussy. He pulled away from her lips and his hand flew to her hips to hold her still. "Don't move. Just give me a second."

When he penetrated her, Beckett let out a content sigh. Finally he was inside her, filling her just the way she wanted and needed. He bent his head to pepper her throat and shoulders with tiny kisses but Kate had none of it. She caught his head and steered him back for more kisses. Rick smiled against her lips and deepened their kiss, as realization finally dawned on him.

"I missed you, too, Kate, so much!" He whispered. Never one to express her feelings and needs quite so vocally, Beckett had reverted to showing him with her touches and kisses what she wanted and needed from him tonight. Well afternoon, whatever.

Today was not going to be the frenzied lovemaking of last weekend, when they'd reunited after a month of not seeing each other. After being deprived of sex for several weeks, their horniness had overshadowed everything else. They hadn't been able to keep their hands to each other all the way to the hotel. Not wanting to be recognized, Beckett had prohibited Castle from showing up at Quantico and took a cab to pick him up at Reagan airport instead. The cab ride from Arlington to the W Hotel had been the longest of both their lives. If the bellboy hadn't been riding up with them, Rick would have taken Kate in the hotel elevator – if she wouldn't have beaten him to it and jumped him first. Rick gave the kid probably the most obscene tip of his life, ushering him out of their suite with the suitcases only halfway through the door. The moment it fell into the lock behind the bellboy, Rick was on top of Kate, kissing and undressing her frantically. They never made it past the couch.

This time was apparently going to be different. With their sexual appetite and adventurousness they didn't have pure vanilla sex often. But today was not about satisfying their baser needs, today was all about them reconnecting as lovers. She'd missed _him_ and not just the sex, Rick realized, and she craved the intimacy the good old missionary position with him on top provided. It reminded him of their second round the first night they slept together. Once all the sexual tension between them had been resolved and gotten out of their systems, they took the time to explore each other's bodies inch by inch.

"Make love to me, Rick." Kate's soft voice penetrated his memories when she broke away from their kiss. He felt a little choked up by her request, as if she'd just told him again for the first time that she loved him. Kate assumed a completely submissive role only on rare occasions; they often wrestled for dominance in the bedroom. Whoever was in charge was so because the other person _let_ them be. He could count on one hand all the times she had, for all intents and purposes, offered herself up to him from the get go like she had done just now. Maybe moving to DC wasn't such a bad thing after all, if the time apart between them made her so receptive to letting him take care of her needs.

Her dark eyes studied him carefully, as his face hovered above her. Instead of the witty comeback, he'd usually throw at her – because sex between them was always fun and lighthearted – his lips descended on hers in the most tender kiss. She closed her eyes and gave herself completely over to his gentle ministrations. His tongue danced around hers slowly, inviting her back into his mouth. Rick started to rock his hips softly and Kate moaned, when she felt him move inside her.

"I love you." She whispered a little breathless.

"I need you." He countered and picked up speed in his thrusts.

She rubbed her nose along his cheek, just below his ear and demanded, "More! Harder!"

Castle shuffled his hands a bit around, looking for better purchase to drive himself deeper inside her.

"Oh god, yes!" Kate exclaimed and arched her body up into his. "Rick!" Her hands travelled down his sides and across his loins to the valley where his back met his ass. She held onto him tight and pressed their bodies together.

Rick's head rested next to hers and she could feel the hot pangs of his breathing by her ear. It was an incredible turn on, to listen how his breaths quickened as his arousal climbed. Kate squeezed him inside her and he groaned into the pillow.

"Kate!" He complained. "I'm not gonna last if you keep torturing me like that."

"Shh, I'm almost there." He felt her hot breath on his ear shell and then she nibbled on his ear lobe. "Tell me how much you missed me."

"So much, Kate, so much." He panted. "I thought about you all the time. I missed you so much."

"Did you…?" Her breath caught in her throat, as his cock switched to a slightly different angle and stimulated her clit more.

"No," he groaned, "you're killing me, Kate."

"I did," she confessed. "I had a long, hot bath Wednesday night, thinking about you, about us together." Her fingers ran up his spine and she could feel him shiver. "I thought about this, how you feel inside me. How good it feels when you fill me with your hard cock. But my fingers were a very, very poor substitute for you."

"Kate!" He whined.

"Let go, Rick. Come for me." She encouraged him, her nose caressing his ear. "I'm so close."

He lifted his head and stared into her eyes. Rick pulled almost all the way out and then thrust inside her deeply. He knew he'd struck the right angle, because Kate's fingers dug into the flesh on his back. The pain was a welcome outlet for his sexual frustration. He was determined not to come before her, but she was making it increasingly difficult with her dirty talk. So much for submissive Beckett, he should have known it was all an act to tease him.

Kate closed her eyes overwhelmed by the new sensation of Rick's cock stroking all the right places. She could feel the first tingles of her orgasm approaching. It was going to be a big one she could tell.

"Open your eyes." Castle demanded.

"Can't, feels too good." Kate moaned.

"I want you to look at me, Beckett." He growled and stopped moving.

Kate's eyes snapped open and glared at him angrily, "Don't stop, Castle. You can't tease me like that, I'm almost there."

"You're the fucking tease, Kate, whispering all those naughty things into my ear." He accused her and picked up his movements again.

"Just telling you what I did while you weren't here." She smiled innocently. He reached that spot again and it took all her willpower not to shut her eyes again.

"That's it, Kate." Castle groaned. "Look at me. That's it, look at me making love to you. Can you feel how hard and ready I am for you?"

"Yes, god, yes!" Kate panted.

"A whole week without you, Beckett. No text, no call, not a single word. Just the memories of you, sprawled out on that couch, panting my name over and over, while I rode you relentlessly."

"Rick," she whispered breathless. "Rick, oh god, Rick."

"That's right, say my name, Kate. Don't you forget whom you've been lusting after all week."

"Fuck, Rick, I'm gonna come." She moaned, "Make me come."

Castle reached between their bodies, cupping one mound her breasts, and kneaded the flesh.

"Come for me, Beckett. I want you to come for me." He encouraged her. His fingers left her breast and found her sensitive clit. The minute his thumb stroked over the engorged mound, Kate screamed his name and came undone in his arms.

Rick watched her for a few moments in the throes of passion, before his own body succumbed under the relentless hold of her pussy over his cock. Her name, a long drawn-out moan, tumbled over his lips, as he spilled inside her.

Kate's lips sought out his for a searing kiss, as she came down from her high. Castle's last few thrusts turned sloppy, trying to prolong their climax as long as possible. She could feel his cock jerking inside her erratically in response to her pussy's lingering throbs around him. They only broke their kiss, when they had to come up for air.

"Wow," Kate sucked in her breath.

"Wow, indeed." He simply looked adorable with his cocky smirk, tousled bed hair and those last traces of that dopey look he always wore in the moments right after they had sex.

"Jackass," Kate smiled. She reached up to run her fingers through the strands of hair that fell over his forehead in complete disarray.

"Tease," Rick grinned.

They laughed and kissed again. Kate was still craving to touch his body, so her hands began to stroke his sides. Up and down, up and down. Her mouth muffled Rick's appreciative hums. They lay for a while in a tangled mess of limbs and sweaty bodies until Rick made a move to roll on his side. Their lovemaking had drained him completely and he found it increasingly harder to support his own weight with his arms.

"Don't you dare move!" Kate's hands gripped him and held him in place.

"Beckett, I'm crushing you." Castle protested.

"Then you'll crush me but you're staying put." She wasn't ready yet to give up the intimate connection of their joint bodies. "At least until you go soft."

"Considering those things you just purred into my ear not five minutes ago, I think that's highly unlikely for a whole week." He shook his head and kissed her passionately. But eventually his erection went away and he slid out after a while.

"Small spoon?" He raised an eyebrow at her in question, before he moved off her. Kate considered his offer for a moment, then shook her head and rolled over to snuggle into the crook of his right arm. She pressed her body close against his side, wrapping one leg over his. Her knee brushed his sensitive cock and Rick let out a quiet hiss.

"Better," she sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. She stretched her head a little to place a small, soft kiss on his neck.

"Mmmm, what was that for?" He sighed dreamily and shuffled around until he found a comfortable spot in the pillows. Beckett suppressed a chuckle. He could be such a girl sometimes after their lovemaking. He was the complete opposite of most men she'd dated before. Will was rolled up into a ball and out like a light, two minutes after his climax. Josh liked to spoon her from behind, arms wrapped around her possessively. They'd share a little pillow talk before he snored off.

Unless she wore him completely out during sex, Castle liked to touch and talk and kiss and cuddle and generally bask in the afterglow of their lovemaking. Sometimes he would just look at her with those deep blue eyes of his, studying her face, as if he wanted to memorize every wrinkle, every crease, every freckle on her skin. With any other man it would have made her feel insecure and self-conscious but when Rick did it, it was like a silent love letter.

This was what she'd missed all week. This quiet moment of perfection, when they lay in bed kissing and cuddling after sex, moments away from falling asleep from exhaustion.

"You must be tired." It was less of a question and more of a statement, as if he could hear her thoughts. "You didn't come back last night."

"We had a break in the case after we talked." Kate mumbled sleepily.

"See, even when I'm not officially your partner, I help you solve cases." He smiled smugly.

"We didn't solve _anything_. We just identified a new promising round of suspects."

Castle looked at her, waiting for her to continue, but apparently that was all she was going to share. He knew there was something more, something that might have triggered Kate's unusually clingy behavior this afternoon. What he didn't know was whether she was not allowed to talk about it or just not ready to share it with him.

"I missed you, Castle." She finally said it. If she had to deflect, this was his favorite method of hers. "I'm so glad we're not doing the long distance thing because this week without you has been hell." Kate confided.

"Same here, that long distance thing totally sucks." Castle reassured her. "Don't worry, once I'm done with the launch of _Deadly Heat_, we'll move in together into our awesome new place here and before you know it, I'll be around you all the time again, driving you crazy."

"Good, I like it when you drive me crazy." Kate yawned.

"And I like driving you crazy." Castle smiled and kissed her forehead. "Now catch some sleep, you've been up 24 hours. Can't catch any whistleblowers, if you need toothpicks to keep your eyes open."

"That's what coffee is for." Kate mumbled in protest, eyes already closed.

"Hush, my love, sleep." Rick chastised her and the term of endearment slipped out. Kate let it slide because she'd missed him so much.


	11. Chapter 11

_A/N: I need to apologize for the prolonged silence. There's a major plot twist coming up and I just had to wait posting the next few chapters to make sure everything that has to be said and happen before then is set up properly, so the dominos can fall smoothly in the second part of the story. I don't want to miss something and then realize ten chapters from now, oh dear, I need to go back and rewrite that scene so it doesn't screw up the overall timeline. Besides, I'd rather have long stretches between updates when there's less action, rather than have readers wait in agony when we're in the thick of it._

_That being said, I hope you're still reading and the interest in this fic has not waned. Be prepared for another long stretch between chapters as I am figuring out the puzzle pieces. There's some major drama coming up. I'm shooting for once a week updates. Thank you for all the reviews, follows and favorites._

* * *

They never made it to the restaurant like Rick had promised. While Kate's body finally succumbed to the exhaustion from running down leads non-stop all week, Castle dozed off, too. And when he woke after a short nap, he simply didn't have the heart to wake her and drag her out of bed for a night on the town. Not when she needed her rest so obviously.

It was sometime around midnight when Beckett stirred in her sleep and blinked bleary-eyed at her fiancé who was propped up against the pillows next to her in bed, typing away on his laptop.

"You know, if I didn't actually _know_ you're writing about the fictional version of _me_, I might just get jealous that you bring your laptop to bed." She purred and stretched.

Castle watched her bend and twist like a cat and licked his lips. "Trust me, as long as you keep your feline agility like that, there's no need to feel jealous."

"Getting hard again so quick?" She rolled on her side and reached under the sheets. Kate frowned when she touched the silky smooth material of his boxers instead of the hot flesh of his penis. "So not cool, Castle."

"You were asleep. And judging from the way you just stretched like a cat ready to prance and prowl I was right to protect my most valuable… assets."

Kate snorted. "Your loss. Just for that I'm going to shower. _Alone_." She threw over her shoulder, as she climbed over his legs.

"Wait," he stopped her mid-move, "are you hungry?"

"Actually I'm famished," Beckett replied and sure enough her stomach rumbled just when her brain was reminded of food.

"Let's order something from room service real quick before the kitchen closes. I left the menu on your bedside table."

"Ok." She retreated back to her side, while Castle already picked up the phone on his nightstand. "Do you already know what you want?"

"Yeah, I had a look while you were sleeping. They don't have full dinner after 10pm, but there are a variety of sandwiches and salads for you to choose."

Kate nodded and perused the folder, while Castle already ordered the wine and his sandwich.

0~0~0~0~0

After a light dinner, Rick ran Kate a hot bath. Instead of joining her, he let her soak alone, hoping it would give her enough time to process whatever had happened at work today. He wasn't stupid. He had recognized the signs immediately, when she rushed into his arms and kissed him so desperately. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy it, and they had both missed each other a lot, but he hadn't seen Beckett act so… needy for a lack of better word, since Gates had suspended her last summer. She couldn't have been fired already, could she? He knew Beckett sometimes bent the rules and went through a brick wall with her head, if she got caught up in a situation, but surely getting suspended one week into her new job would be a new record. Nah, it must have been something else. Maybe they'd been hazing her again about Nikki Heat, though he didn't know when they'd found the time, considering they were on the hunt for a national traitor.

The fact remained, however, that whenever Kate Beckett's professional life lay in shambles, she turned to him, Richard Castle, for reassurances that not _everything_ in her life was going up in flames. He tried his best to be there for her, while she wrestled her demons. A small part of him actually took pleasure in it. Not that her job had taken a blow, but that she came to him. _Needed_ him to tell her in not so many words but rather through gestures and touches that, no matter what happened, she still had him. That she hadn't sunk her private life with her professional one. It had taken them such a long time to get to the point, where she no longer shut him out, when that happened. Of course, he also knew that the healthy thing for her would be to talk about it and not hide behind glances and touches, so when she emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in one of those fluffy hotel robes, he reached out for her hand and pulled her into bed with him.

It took astonishingly little coaxing before she explained how she'd wanted to impress her new colleagues and got sent home when she chased a suspect without back up. Castle was livid. Naturally, he chastised Kate for being so stupid to put her life into danger like that, but mostly he was pissed that her new colleagues hadn't been there to have her back.

"Don't be mad, Castle." She tried to calm him down. "Nothing happened, I'm fine."

He shook his head and inspected every inch of her body for possible scratches and injuries.

"I'm pretty sure I would've noticed a blood trail by now, if he'd actually hit me. Besides, I was wearing my vest."

"Vests leave bruises," he reminded her, as his palm slid over her soft skin.

"He missed, Castle. He was a pretty bad shot."

"Don't do that to me, Kate." He kissed her shoulder blade. "I can't do this, if I have to worry about your safety all the time."

"Castle, nothing has changed. The risk has always been there, since the day we met."

"Yes, but back in New York I was _with_ you."

"Need I remind you that it was my job to protect you and not the other way round?"

"Says the woman whose life I've saved on numerous occasions." He cast her a look.

"Shhh," she silenced him with a kiss. "I love you and I promise you I won't throw my life away in exchange for a quick collar. Ok?"

"Ok," he whispered back and deepened their kiss.

0~0~0~0~0

Sunday morning Kate Beckett was roused from her deep sleep by a vaguely familiar tune. "Castle, your phone," she mumbled sleepily and swatted his chest.

He reached for his cell groggily, "That's Skip." He checked the time. 8.13am. He wondered what the young man wanted from him so early.

"Who?" Beckett frowned.

"The realtor I've made appointments with this weekend." Rick explained and accepted the call.

"We're not buying a home from anyone named Skip!" She protested sleepily. The pillow muffled her groan.

"Skip, my man, how are you doing this fine morning?" Rick listened attentively to what the other man was saying and nodded his head occasionally. "No, that's fine. We understand. Don't worry. We'll see you at 11.30 then…. Yeah that's right, I'm bringing Kate along this time. I will. Bye."

Castle hung up and turned around to look at Kate who pretended she was asleep. "Skip had an emergency so we're meeting him at 11.30 instead of 10.45. He'll show us both properties back to back."

"I gathered as much. We're still not buying a house from Skippy."

"Aw, come on, Beckett. Give the kid a chance. You'll like him, you'll see. He's got your sense of humor. He showed me this condo yesterday and it had this god-awful flokati rug in what I assume was otherwise supposed to be the man cave. So Skip looks up from the rug, straight into my eyes and asks, 'How many Fraggles do you think had to die for this monstrosity?' Perfect dead pan delivery, too, I'm so gonna steal that for my next book."

"Fraggles!" Beckett exclaimed and straightened up in bed. "That's what that tune was!" It had been driving her crazy for the last few minutes that she couldn't identify the ringtone melody.

"Yeah, figured after that comment it would make a great ringtone for Skip." Rick grinned. "Now, how about we take a morning shower, order some breakfast and then get ready to meet Skip in Georgetown?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her seductively.

0~0~0~0~0

Maybe it was because Kate was with him this time, but Castle found the first townhouse they viewed already more appealing than either of the condos he'd visited yesterday. Skip gave them the quick run down on the details, before he excused himself to give Rick and Kate some privacy to explore by themselves.

It was a three-story house with 2500 square feet, a simple white façade and a stone staircase flanked by a large bay window on either side. A fairly large entrance hall with checkered tiles and high walls welcomed visitors into this stylish townhouse. A spiral staircase with a black iron cast handrail dominated the right side of the reception room.

Beckett stood in the middle of the hall awestruck. She knew that living with Rick would mean a certain lifestyle, but this bordered on decadent. She twirled once around herself, taking in the impressive surroundings. The room was large enough to host a small cocktail party. That was probably the original purpose of the whole floor, representation.

Castle had already ventured past the open archway into the next room. Very much like the previous hall, this living room was intended to entertain guests. A landscape of sleek, European-style modern sea foam green sofas adorned the left back corner. A pair of equally minimalist white armchairs completed the ensemble. Beckett noted that, surprisingly, the antique coffee table made from mahogany wood did not clash with the modern furniture.

She also noticed the dreamy look Castle gave the gigantic plasma screen mounted on the opposite wall. Beckett could already envision herself traipsing down the spiral staircase in the dead of the night, asking Castle to quit playing Halo on the big screen and join her in bed.

"What are you thinking?" Rick asked when the ghost of a smile hushed over her face.

Not wanting to rehash an old argument, Kate simply shrugged her shoulders, "Just trying to envision us living in this place."

"And?"

"I don't know…"

"It just doesn't feel like us." Castle finished for her and they both nodded slightly.

"Come on, we can at least take a look at everything to get ideas." Kate reached for his hand and Rick looked down where she linked her fingers through his. Little PDAs like this reminded him that they were no longer actively hiding their relationship from the world, or in particular the NYPD. That was one of the good things about her new job.

"Kate, there's something we need to talk about." Rick started uncomfortably when they stood in the kitchen. She gave him a curious look. "Paula wants us to do a few interviews together on Saturday." They slipped through another archway and found themselves in the dining room.

"Why?" Kate whined. "I hate doing interviews about Nikki Heat."

"I know." Castled hedged for a few moments. "It's not really about _Deadly Heat_, though I imagine there'll be some questions to be fielded about Nikki and Rook's relationship." He paused and squeezed her hand nervously. "Paula wants us to do an interview together… about us. About this." He lifted their hands to hold up her engagement ring.

"Oh!" Kate let out a breath. "You told her about us?"

"They figured it out on their own, well Gina really did, after your phone call."

Beckett looked at him silently, biting her lip.

"Say something?" Rick asked nervously.

"Gina knows?" She knew the day was coming when she'd have to face Rick's other ex-wife about their relationship, especially now that they were officially engaged, but the confrontation with Meredith had been enough.

"Relax, Gina is not going to make herself comfortable in the loft, claiming her old spot. We have a purely professional relationship now, she knows her place in my life."

Kate wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. "You have too many ex-wives." She mumbled into his shirt.

"I know but this is a mistake I won't repeat again." He smiled down at her and she lifted her head, beaming at him. "This one's gonna last forever!" He declared and kissed her softly.

"Do I really have to do the interview? I don't want to talk about us, it's no one's business what we do." She pulled back.

"You're right, but if we don't speak out with the truth, they might print lies about us."

"They're still gonna print lies about us anyways." Beckett rolled her eyes. "They'll probably paint me as some gold-digging, star-struck fan who snatched one of New York's most eligible bachelors."

"Well you did strike gold with me and you _are_ my number one fan."

"In you dreams, Castle, in your dreams." Kate tried to pull away, but Rick pulled her back.

"In my _dreams_, Beckett, you dress up like Nikki and bring a bottle of Tequ…"

"Is that what you want?" She interrupted him, suddenly feeling a little insecure. She'd never been one to care much about men's opinions, but she wanted to keep Rick forever. Never before had she been in a relationship where she actually wanted to _please_ another man. Even now it wasn't so much pleasing Rick as trying to respect his needs and desires. When he looked at her confused, she explained, "Do you want me to be a bit more slutty?"

"What? No!" He kissed her soundly. "You're perfect just the way you are. I wouldn't change a thing about you. I like the way you dress for me, even at work. Professional but accentuating just the right parts. Makes it all the sexier. If you knew how many times in those incredibly long four years I went home to take a cold shower before bed..."

"Oh please, don't lie to me. You went out to pick up a blonde and have hot sex with her instead."

"Maybe, at first. But not later, after Gina and I split," he lowered his voice and held her a little closer in his embrace, "while I was waiting for you, I'd just go home. _Alone_."

"And write dirty little sex scenes for Nikki and Rook?" She teased him.

"And masturbated thinking about you." Castle finally conceded. "There. Happy now?"

"You never told me why you broke up with Gina?" Kate asked carefully and pulled back from his embrace. "I didn't ask before, but we're getting married…"

"She wasn't you." Castle stated simply and shrugged his shoulders. "We were fighting a lot, as everyone could read in the papers, until we were arguing about fighting. It was not the relationship I wanted I realized quickly. In my mind I always compared her to you. Beckett would say that, Kate wouldn't do that. You know, looking back we never had a chance. She wasn't _whom_ I wanted. You were constantly on my mind ever since you turned down the weekend in the Hamptons. But you were with Demming first, and then Josh… and I foolishly tried to convince myself I was in love with Gina again. But it doesn't matter what the brain tells us to do. The heart wants what the heart wants."

"Ohh." Beckett drew out the word shocked. "I was actually thinking about your divorce, you know so I'd know what… I mean so we won't repeat old mistakes…" She was rambling and she knew it, but he had just told her he'd been in love with her all along. Almost from the very beginning. She wanted to ask him why he took Gina to the Hamptons in the first place, but he couldn't have known that she'd ditched Tom for him. "You were in love with me even then?"

He gave her a small nod.

"Why didn't you say something?"

"And have you throw it in my face at every opportunity?" He looked at her incredulous. "Besides, you were with Josh at the time. You hated my guts back then, Beckett. Why would I make myself vulnerable like that? And I tried to test the waters; that's why I invited you out to the Hamptons for the weekend. To see if we would connect outside of the precinct as friends or… lovers."

"I think we connect pretty well." She smiled and gave him a chaste kiss. "And hate is a pretty strong word."

"So what do you say about the kitchen then?" Castle had shared more than he wanted and was looking for a distraction. He turned her around in his arms, so she could see for herself.

"It's ok. Not as nice as the one at the loft, but bigger and better than my old one anyway."

"Doesn't look like anyone's ever cooked in here, though." Castle remained skeptical.

"That would mean we'd get the appliances in pristine condition."

"Since when are you the one looking for the silver lining?" He grinned at her.

"Must be from hanging around you too much."

They left the kitchen and returned to the entrance hall. As they were ascending the spiral staircase, Castle made a comment about using one of those in his next novel.

"So Nikki finally takes down the door and there he is. The suspect they've been trying to find for days, hanging by a rope from the spiral staircase. It looks like suicide and a letter with a confession lies conveniently on the sideboard in the room, but you and I both know it's a red herring, of course. The real killer set him up as a patsy and strangled him."

Kate shook her head, smiling, as she listened to her fiancé spinning already the plot for the next Nikki Heat. Which reminded her of the party on Saturday.

"Castle?" She called his name for attention. He had already entered the first bedroom.

"Yeah?" He turned around.

"How many interviews?" Beckett followed him into the room. It was of decent size but didn't have a lot of light. It would make a good guestroom but for Alexis they'd have to find something better.

"You mean on Saturday?"

She nodded.

"Only a select few. Paula suggested I'd do a press conference announcing our engagement. Afterwards she'll arrange an exclusive with a few reporters who've been treating me kindly in the past. That's where you'd join me. You wouldn't have to be at the press conference."

"I won't answer any intimate questions about us." She was leaning against the wall, her arms folded.

"But you'll do it?"

Kate nodded, "They'll badger us until we do it anyway. I don't want them to follow me around while I'm working. They'll just print what they want in the meantime. If we do the interview now, maybe they'll leave us alone and stick to the truth for once."

"That's what Gina and Paula said. And Kate, you've handled press at crime scenes before, you already know the two most important words when dealing with someone from the media."

"I do?" She frowned.

"No comment." He grinned. He was just about to lead her out of the bedroom, because really, there was not a lot to see, when Beckett's cell phone rang.

"It's work." She checked the caller ID and Castle's face fell.

"I thought you said Rachel sent you home for the weekend? Which, by the way, is even a new record for you, Beckett. One week in on the new job and already you break the rules? Where's the straight-laced NYPD detective I met five years ago, who wouldn't even let me jump the line at the DNA lab?"

"She hung out with you for said five years." Kate rolled her eyes. "Look, I forgot to mention that there'll probably be an inquiry this afternoon about the shooting yesterday. They're calling to schedule it." Rick nodded.

"Beckett," Kate barked into the phone, "what's up Hendricks?"

"_It's over."_

"What?"

"_We got him, Nikki. It's over."_

"What? When? How?"

"_It's all over the news. He beat us to it and went public. Turn on your TV, it's breaking news on practically every station."_

"I can't. No TV access. I'm looking at houses with my fiancé."

"_Oh, I like this new domestic side of you, Detective Heat."_

"Shut up. So what's next for us?"

"_Rachel wants us in the office at 3pm for a debriefing. That includes you. Your hearing is scheduled afterwards."_

Kate looked at her wristwatch. It was now almost noon. "Ok. I'll see you then." They said good-bye and hung up. When she looked up, Castle was gone. Great, now he was pissed at her. She checked every room on the upper floor for him but couldn't find him.

Finally, she went downstairs again. Maybe he was talking to Skip. She hoped he hadn't stormed out of the building. Kate could understand that he was upset that she got called away, when he expected to spend the whole day with her. If she left straight from the next property, perhaps a little early, they could at least do their second viewing.

"Edward Snowden." Castle greeted her, when she found him in the living room, watching the news with Skip. He didn't look mad at all. Curiosity had simply gotten the better of him, so when she mentioned TV in connection with her case to Matt, he'd hurried downstairs to turn on the TV. "There are conflicting reports on his whereabouts, some say China, some say Hong Kong, some Japan, some Russia. A few mention Hawaii."

Dammit, Hollister's team had the right suspect all along, even if he'd managed to evade them, while she risked her life chasing down a junkie.

"Is he the guy?" He looked at her and she crossed the remaining distance between them in a few strides.

"No, I can't tell you the names, but he wasn't the one my team was going after. Hollister's team was deployed to Hawaii to follow up on leads regarding Snowden."

"Oh, so he _was_ on your radar?"

"He was one name of many on Rookie's list of new suspects. Nothing indicated that he was the whistleblower." Kate tried to keep the information as vague as possible, since Skip was in the room with them, while still answering Castle's questions.

"It's always the quiet ones. So you have to go in?" He muted the TV and turned to her.

"Yes, later. We meet at 3pm. That leaves us with a little over two hours before I have to leave. Let's wrap up this one and rush over to the other property." She glanced at Skip for confirmation, "You set them up back to back, right?"

"Yes," the younger man nodded eagerly. He looked at her with a hint of awe, probably brought on by the knowledge that she was an investigator on such a high profile case.

"Did you look around upstairs more? I didn't check out any other rooms." Castle drew her attention back to him.

"A little. The master bedroom was ok, a little dark for my taste, but the en suite bathroom was to die for. Marble stones, brass finishing, a ridiculously sized Jacuzzi tub and a shower large enough for two." She grinned at him.

"But?"

"Nothing else. And I mean nothing. The master bedroom with its walk-in closet and en suit bathroom takes up most of the space on the top floor. There's another bedroom, which is larger than the one we were in when I got the call, and a smaller but full bath for the other bedrooms to share."

"Would the second bed and bath be big enough for Alexis?"

"Yes, but I'm still not feeling the vibe."

"That's okay, Kate. We're buying a house together for the first time. No one expects us to fall in love with the first property we see."

"Shall we take a quick look at the lower level?" She grabbed his hand and pulled him back to the entrance hall, where Skip was already waiting.

The lowest floor was not accessible by the spiral staircase but a small door slightly hidden behind it. A short dark set of narrow stairs led down to what Rick jokingly dubbed the dungeon.

"Where was this when Alexis turned fifteen? I could have used this to lock her away from the boys."

"Like Alexis _ever_ gave you reason to be concerned about teenage pregnancy. She can lecture _you_ on responsibility." Beckett rolled her eyes.

"I thought that was your job," Castle quipped.

"It's not really a finished basement," Skip interrupted their banter, "even though it's partially below ground level because of the way the house it built into hill. Technically we're street level now, because the stairs outside lead from the street to the mid level with the reception rooms."

They reached the end of the stairs and spread out on the lowest floor.

"Now the nice thing about this lower level is that it gets lots of light still. It would be ideal to set up a space for guests. It's like a small apartment. The separate level means they can be fairly independent of you, there's also a small kitchenette and a large bathroom that can be shared between the guest rooms. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll leave you two to take a look around, while I make a phone call upstairs. Reception isn't too good down here."

Once Skip was out of earshot, Castle turned to Beckett, "Can you say servants quarters?"

"I know. I bet the previous owners were stinking rich with live-in maids and butlers."

"They couldn't have had a cook the way that kitchen looked untouched." Castle chuckled. "So who slept in the third bed room?"

"The chauffeur!" They simultaneously shouted and broke out into laughter.

"You're right, this house is so not us. I like luxury but this is even a little over the top for me."

"Though I quite like the idea of a separate floor with a small kitchenette for Alexis."

"She won't be living with us, Kate. Much as it would please me, I doubt she'll move in with us here in D.C. after college."

"I know but I thought it would give her the independence she needed when she returns to visit us. I found it really difficult the first time I came back from college and stayed with my parents again. Suddenly all my new-found independence was gone, my dad wanted to know where I was going, my mother wanted to know if I'd be home for dinner…"

Silence spread between them, because even though neither one of them mentioned it, they both knew what happened a few weeks later. Young Kate Beckett would have willingly traded all her independence for a few more years with her mother.

"Come on, let's head over to the next listing." He took her hand and squeezed it softly to give her a little bit of reassurance.


End file.
